Writer's Best Friend
by shrimpette
Summary: When Sasuke learned that now he was going to be an editor for an A-list author, he felt proud. And then Itachi handed him the last chapter Naruto Uzumaki wrote. "This is shit," Sasuke uttered decidedly and hit the blonde on the head with neatly pinned heap of paper. "Who are you?" the blonde blurted out, and the brunette's eye twitched. What. /AU, yaoi, rated M for later chaps.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I don't own Naruto. **

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><p>Sasuke eyed the blond slob sitting in front of him. When he learned that now he was going to be an editor for an A-list author, he felt proud. Finally, he was going to achieve something and step out from his brother's shadow. He was even more glad when he learned that he was to be editing for one of his favorite writers. And then Itachi handed him the last chapter Naruto Uzumaki wrote.<p>

"This is shit," Sasuke uttered decidedly and hit the blonde on the head with neatly pinned heap of paper. The writer glared at him, apparently not understanding the seriousness of the situation. It irritated Uchiha even more.

"Who are you?" he blurted out, and the brunette's eye twitched. _What_.

"I'm your new editor," he explained, and sat down in front of the blonde. The man stared at him for a suspiciously long amount of time.

"Where's Itachi?" he inquired after a long pause, and Sasuke had to do a round of breathe-ins and breathe-outs to keep his cool.

"I've send you an e-mail before. It was the same mail in which I scheduled our meeting here," he explained, trying to appear patient. They were sitting in a nice cafe that was crowded with all the kinds of hipsters, writers, and wannabe writers.

"Oh, yeah, I'm not really reading these," Naruto said happily. "When is Itachi coming back?" he asked merrily, and Sasuke hit the tabletop with his palms. Some of Uzumaki's coffee spilled on the table, and the editor noticed that it was one of those crazy way-too-much-whipped-creams. He glared at it with disdain. There was no way that someone who would drink something so stupid could be a well respected author. It had even chocolate sprinkles in it.

"He's not coming back," Uchiha responded firmly, and the blonde looked at him doubtfully.

"Did his daddy fire him?" he questioned, and Sasuke bit his lip. He would get a lot of crap for working in the family business but Uchiha Publishing House _was_ the best one there was, and working anywhere else wouldn't make sense. Not that he wanted to admit to being Fugaku's son any time soon.

"No, he didn't," he replied.

"Then he's coming back. Tell Fugaku I don't want a new editor," Naruto stated matter-of-factly, and started getting up. He didn't even touch his coffee. Sasuke panicked. He told his father that he will be able to handle Naruto, and now it seemed as if he wouldn't even get a chance of doing that.

"Mr Uchiha to you," he corrected Uzumaki, and sighed heavily. _You can do this._ "Itachi's not coming back, and this chapter is a steaming pile of crap," he resumed the topic he wanted to discuss.

"Itachi would make it work," Naruto declared. He was already standing up, and he even started to put his coat on. If Uzumaki will ask his father to get him his previous editor back, his father will listen to him. And then Itachi will mock him, and his father won't trust him with anything serious for another year. Sasuke clenched his fists. He was already tired of waiting.

"You're going to rewrite it, and you're going to send it to me by the end of the week," he stated firmly.

"I don't even know you," Naruto answered and laughed. His mood was still pretty good, and Uchiha hated him for it.

"Sasuke," he introduced himself, deciding to leave out his surname.

"You're Itachi's brother!" the author realized and sat down again. For some reason, he seemed excited about it. Sasuke wished he could be just as excited. "So what, Fugaku's is using me as your training wheels?" he mocked the brunette, and started to sip the coffee. His nose was now spotted with whipped cream. Uchiha waited for a whole minute until he wiped it off. Naruto looked at him in a weird way, tilting his head as if he was an animal.

"You've had whipped cream on your nose," he explained his actions. "And it's Mr Uchiha to you."

"Maybe to you," the blonde laughed at him, and downed the coffee in one go. Sasuke frowned. It wasn't very far from truth. Not like Naruto needed to know that.

"And you're not my first author," he added. He didn't want to be treated as a newbie. He knew the business pretty well. "And I could make this shit work but then they would have to put my name on the cover instead of yours," he declared, challenging the other man with his stare. Somehow he managed to sustain his cool image throughout the meeting.

"Itachi wasn't this mean," Uzumaki said merrily and grinned at him. Sasuke felt he started to gain some ground. "But I will entertain you for the time being. You'll probably resign on your own anyways," he stated, and Uchiha wondered whether he should treat is as a threat. Then Naruto left without bidding him goodbye, and the brunette could finally let out his frustration. One of the hipsters eyed him nervously, evidently amazed at how many curse words Sasuke knew.

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><p>A few days later, at 1am, Sasuke learned that he knew even more curse words. He ringed the doorbell repeatedly, hoping that the damn idiot will finally get annoyed enough to stand up and open the doors. He wasn't wrong. But he definitely miscalculated when he believed Naruto to be sleeping. The blonde opened the doors, wearing nothing but boxer shorts, and he was still panting heavily. The boxer shorts were also tightly embracing a pretty obvious erection. Uchiha smirked nastily. It appeared that now both of their evenings were ruined.<p>

"You've missed your deadline," he growled, and invited himself into the writer's apartment. He couldn't help but be curious about how one of his favorite authors lived like. He eyed the flat, deciding that it seemed cosy enough.

"I've missed it by one hour," the man whined, trying to force his lips to form a stern frown. Sasuke was able to notice that he was actually smiling. _What the hell_. An almost naked woman left one of the rooms, and glared at Uchiha angrily.

"Who is he?" she inquired. Her face was still flushed, and her breasts were moving up and down with every heavy breath she took.

"That's my new editor," Naruto explained and grinned like an idiot. _Does he actually enjoy this?_

"Where's the chapter?" he questioned, and sat down in a leather chair. It was something he learned from his father. Acting as if he owned the place.

"He's really mean," Uzumaki complained to his lover in a whining voice, and kissed her neck. Sasuke boiled with anger. He didn't like being spoken of in third person when he was there. He raised his eyebrow and played the waiting game. The woman eventually gave up and returned to one of the rooms. Some minutes later, when Naruto was still trying to win the stare contest with Uchiha, she appeared again, now fully dressed. She mumbled her goodbyes and left the apartment. "I hope you came here to take her place," he muttered angrily.

"Where is the chapter?" Sasuke repeated his question. He didn't have time for bullshit.

"I didn't finish it yet," Uzumaki admitted boldly and sat on the other end of coffee table, his legs spread apart. Apparently he was some kind of sad exhibitionist who hoped that other people will get uncomfortable only because they could see the bulge in his trousers. The brunette wasn't going to feel uncomfortable. He saw worse things. Sometimes he wondered why did publishing houses agree to patiently suffer through their writers' mental breakdowns.

"Do it now, I'll wait for it," he declared and took out a tablet from his bag. He launched it, and started to ignore the blonde who was still glaring daggers at him.

"If you wanted to spend some time alone with your favorite writer, you could've just asked for it, you know," he grunted and got up, putting on some sweater that was lying on the back of the computer chair. Sasuke stole a glance at his ass. It was truly a shame that Uzumaki had to be an annoying idiot.

"You're not my favorite author," he replied as he was reading through his e-mails. The other writers he was working with were far less problematic. But, then again, none of them was as important as Naruto. The blonde was probably the only one among them, whom other publishing houses were trying to steal.

"Stop lying, Itachi already told me that I am," the man stated bluntly. Sasuke cocked his eye at him. His brother's mouth was definitely too big. Uzumaki put on some washed jeans, and grabbed a laptop that was lying on the desktop.

"You used to be one," Sasuke decided to tell a half-lie. "You're pretty disappointing when one gets to know you," he added and started reading another writer's work. He cursed under his breath, correcting the very first sentence he saw. It was going to be a long night.

"You don't know me," Naruto said in an accusing tone as he was typing something. Uchiha ignored him. He didn't come here to talk about the artist's feelings. He just wanted to get the thing done. The blonde was staring at him every now and then. Sasuke noticed that his tablet was running out of battery so he found his charger and plugged it into a socket. "I didn't tell you that you're free to use my electricity," Naruto whined pointlessly, and the brunette just glared at him. If the idiot wanted to annoy him, he will have to try harder. The tablet was charging now, and Uzumaki just frowned at him. The brunette congratulated himself mentally. Perhaps controlling Naruto wasn't this difficult.

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><p>Sasuke woke up to his phone ringing. He got up quickly, feeling panicked. He didn't remember falling asleep. He looked at his phone screen and froze. It was already 11am, and it was his father who was calling. Fugaku probably wanted to know where the hell was he and Naruto's latest creation. He cursed under his nose, and noticed that at his feet was lying a blanket. Uchiha raised his eyebrow, and, still not picking up the phone, looked around the room. Uzumaki was nowhere to be seen. He didn't stand him up now, did he?<p>

The brunette barged into another room-the one into which he saw the woman walking into earlier that day. And there was the blonde-sleeping in his goddamn bed like a giant slob. He shook the writer's shoulders, trying to wake him up. His phone stopped ringing but five seconds later it began again.

"Wake up, idiot," he growled, and Naruto looked at him sleepily.

"What do you want?" he inquired yawning. He stretched his body, and lay comfortably, peacefully watching Sasuke lose his shit.

"Where's the chapter?"

"I printed it out for you, it's lying on the coffee table," the man explained merrily and grinned. "I tried to wake you up but you were cranky," he added and chuckled.

Uchiha didn't remember that either but he knew himself well enough to know that it could be true. He didn't have time for this anyways so he stormed out of the bedroom, and grabbed the corrected version of the chapter. He scanned through it, and, noticing that it was better than the previous one, he answered the call.

"I'll be in the office in half an hour," he informed his father instead of greeting him.

"What took you so long?" Fugaku growled at him. "You have a meeting scheduled at 1pm," he added and sighed heavily, disconnecting. Sasuke knew he was fucked. He grabbed his belongings and rushed towards the building of Uchiha Publishing House. He didn't even have time to make himself look acceptable. The blond idiot will be the death of him.

When he finally reached his office, his _loving and caring_ brother decided to visit him, probably to unnerve him further. Itachi looked at him for the longest time without saying a single word. Then he chuckled. And Itachi wasn't the chuckling type of person.

"What is it?" Sasuke growled as he was rummaging through his desk, trying to find everything he needed for the meeting at 1pm. He had just half an hour before he had to go there and amaze everyone.

"You may want to check yourself out in a mirror," his older brother advised, and sat in the chair standing in front of the desk. Sasuke cocked his eye at him, and slowly made his way into the bathroom. And then he saw it. He had a friggin 'Uzumaki's #1 Fan' written in pen all over his forehead. He paraded through the city with this goddamn scribbling on his face. He wanted to kill something or someone. But now he had to clean this.

He realized that the gods abandoned him when he noticed that the writing didn't want to disappear. Itachi went into the bathroom, and smiled nastily at his brother. Sasuke could see the reflection of his face in the mirror.

"I can take him back, you know," his brother suggested innocently, handing him a nail polish remover. _Why would he have a nail polish remover on him?!_

"I can handle this," Sasuke murmured, and sighed with relief when he noticed that the pen was dissolving, leaving his forehead clean and… red. Well, it was still an improvement.

"It doesn't look that way now," Itachi stated, and smiled at him.

"I have the chapter," the younger brunette opposed, wondering whether the red blemish will disappear over the next twenty minutes.

"He always sends the chapter the morning after the deadline. That's why we're setting his deadline in such a way that it doesn't matter," Itachi explained patiently. _And you're saying this now_.

"When I came to his place, he didn't have it finished," Sasuke murmured.

"He was probably just fucking with you. He's an attention whore," the man said in a soft voice. "He wouldn't dare to write anything on _my_ forehead, though."

"Fuck off, Itachi," Sasuke growled and returned to his files. He decided that from now on he will ignore the blond idiot completely.

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><p>Two months later, on the morning after Naruto's deadline, Sasuke was pretending that he was chilling in his office. There wasn't anyone else with him but he was still trying to look unamused as he was slamming the F5 button, refreshing his inbox. Itachi claimed that Uzumaki will send him the chapter. Maybe he just lied to him, wanting Sasuke to look even worse in the eyes of their father. Then he heard his office doors throw open, and raised his eyes, seeing agitated Naruto. He closed the web browser patiently, and smiled under his nose.<p>

"Good morning," Sasuke greeted the other man, who huffed at him with irritation. _That was too easy_.

"You didn't come to get the latest chapter," the blonde pointed out and put a still warm heap of paper on Uchiha's desktop.

"I didn't," the brunette admitted in a bored tone. "You could've just sent it to me, you didn't have to come here," he added, enjoying the angry look on Uzumaki's face. _By gods, he really is a total attention whore_. Sasuke shook his own hand mentally. He finally cracked the case, and now he can resume his happy life. Naruto shot him a hurt stare, and left the office. The brunette waited until his tall figure disappeared completely, and started to read the chapter. Then he felt his cheeks tinting in deep red.

In this chapter Menma, the protagonist of Naruto's newest book, was fucking Sasuke. Sasuke, who had had the same name, and, apparently, looked exactly the same as the real life Sasuke. It was fifty standard pages of moans and anal sex. Uchiha gulped loudly. He counted to ten. He counted to one hundert. He grabbed his phone, and sent Uzumaki a text, ordering him to meet him today at 6pm. Then he rested his head on the desk, wondering why was he punished so severely. And what for.

What was even worse, Itachi appeared in his office, as if suffering Sasuke was emitting pheromones his brother couldn't resist. He didn't even raise his head or greet him.

"What is it now?" Itachi asked in an amused voice, and Sasuke pointed his finger towards Uzumaki's latest creation. The older brunette picked up the chapter and started to read it. Then he chuckled again. Apparently everyone was insane now. "He has the real chapter somewhere, he just wanted to shock you," Itachi said patiently.

"And I guess that he wouldn't dare to do something like this to you either," Sasuke muttered and sighed heavily. He felt defeated.

"I'm actually amazed at how far he went to unnerve you," his brother declared. "You know, this means that he had to write twice as much as he usually does. It takes time."

"Great, so he actually likes to torture me," the man complained.

"He did write me in once but I got just one paragraph," Itachi confessed and Sasuke could swear he heard envy in his voice. "And my character just did something stupid because he got angry at me," he added, and pondered over something. "What do you plan to do with this?"

"I have to get the real thing quickly," he mused.

"So you're letting him win this?"

"It's not like I can let him write _this_ into the book. It doesn't even make sense plotwise."

"He knows that, and he probably doesn't want it to get published either," Itachi noticed. "I would just go with it," he said.

"Father will kill me if he sees this," Sasuke reminded his brother. Well, he heard something about older siblings wishing for being an only child.

"Father will see this a week from now," the man stated calmly.

"Yeah, and he will want to see it corrected."

"So you'll lose a night of sleep. You have to learn how to control that brat," Itachi uttered firmly. "It's actually pretty entertaining when you already know all of his pressure points," he mused and smiled warmly. _My brother is a psychopath._

"Then what are his pressure points?" he inquired.

"Oh, these you'll have to learn for yourself. You just have to bluff convincingly."

"Or I could just ask him to give me the proper chapter," Sasuke pointed out.

"That way you'll lose half of the fun. And since you didn't set your boundaries early on, you'll only see yourself losing to him whenever he'll feel like it."

"I ignored him, just like you told me to," the younger brunette said. Fuck his pride, he needed to solve this soon.

"I never told you to ignore him. I've just said that he was a total attention whore. It's quite easy to use it against him. You need to establish your dominance but you have to pamper him every now and then."

"_Establish my dominance?_" Sasuke questioned and raised an eyebrow. Was it just him or did Itachi enjoy himself too much?

"Just show him that you're more of an alpha than he is," his brother murmured.

"Am I supposed to challenge him to a fight and compare the size of our canines?"

"Sure, if you're a walrus," Itachi mocked the other man. "Just show him that you're in charge. Don't lose your temper and give him back the corrected version of this. You can also add some suggestions as to how to make it more believable plotwise."

"I told him to meet me at 6pm," Sasuke complained.

"Then you've got work to do," the older brunette smiled at his younger brother and left his office. Uchiha sighed and started rereading the chapter. He didn't have anything to lose, did he?


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you for all of the reviews, follows and favorites! They mean a lot to me, and they motivate me to write faster :) One of the reviewers asked if this is going to be SasuNaru or NaruSasu, and, well, it's going to be both. **

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><p>Sasuke went into the restaurant in which he was supposed to meet the writer. He noticed that the blonde was already sitting by one of the tables and apparently he was flirting with the waiter. Uchiha headed towards the man, and Naruto waved at him, evidently happy. The brunette wondered whether Uzumaki wasn't a masochist.<p>

"You're finally here," the blonde greeted the male. He was already drinking white wine. Sasuke picked up the menu, and placed his order, not saying a word to Naruto. The author was growing impatient. "What did you want to talk about? You know, I had to change my plans so I hope that it was something important," he mumbled and twiddled his thumbs.

"I wanted to talk about your last chapter," Uchiha replied. The blonde grinned at him, evidently proud of himself. "I think it's very good but having so many sex scenes one after another is rather tiring," he said.

"Yeah, yeah… wait, what?"

"Is something wrong?" Sasuke questioned innocently, staring into the blue eyes, which firstly widened in shock, and then came back to their usual selves in understanding.

"Itachi told you to do this," Uzumaki stated firmly, and stretched his legs under the table. One of them touched the brunette's, whose first instinct was to change his position but then he remembered his brother talking about being an alpha, so he also stretched his, fighting for dominance. He felt incredibly stupid but Naruto raised an eyebrow and removed his legs.

"Itachi suggested this, yes, but he just wanted to force you into giving me the real chapter," he admitted and thanked the waiter, who brought him the drink. He didn't order anything to eat yet. He believed that he wouldn't be able to argue his case while eating and letting the food to get cold would be wasteful. "But I think that this chapter is actually pretty good. It just doesn't work as a chapter per se. You'll need to scatter these fragments throughout the book," Sasuke explained patiently, slowly twirling the gin and tonic in the glass.

"And you're completely cool with my character fucking you?" Uzumaki asked, his face slightly flushed.

"An editor should inspire his writer," the brunette responded sarcastically. He was glad that he prepared himself for this question. Otherwise he would feel much more embarrassed because in reality he was _not_ okay with this.

"So you'd like to be fucked by Menma," Naruto said slowly, letting the words sink into the editor's mind.

"No, but since I don't identify with your Sasuke, I see no problem with it."

"It's you," Uzumaki exclaimed. "For fuck's sake, he's named after you, he looks like you and he acts like you. Are you really this dense?!"

"He doesn't act like me," the brunette disagreed.

The writer eyed him and leaned towards him, pressing his lips against Uchiha's. Sasuke didn't expect _this_. He froze with his eyes wide open as the blonde forced his tongue into the editor's mouth. It tasted of sweet wine, and he bit it.

"It fucking hurt," Naruto complained. The brunette mentally counted to ten, trying to calm his racing heart. "See, it's even bleeding," he whined and showed Uchiha slightly bloodied finger.

"I'm your _editor_," the man panted as if it could explain his actions. _Why am I panting?_

"You're sending mixed signals, you know," the blonde mused and chuckled. Sasuke bit the inside of his cheek. He was doing his best to not act unprofessionally and to not hit the idiot. Especially since they were in a place crowded with people, who were already watching them closely. Uchiha heard a snicker, and, obviously, decided that the restaurant guest was laughing at him. The brunette huffed with annoyance.

"You're going to do what I'm telling you to," he growled. Naruto folded his arms, and stared at the other man grinning.

"Or you'll _spank_ me?" the blonde asked jokingly, and stretched his legs again, resting one of them on Sasuke's. Uchiha kicked it off. "Just take the real chapter and let's call it a night," he proposed. "I'm getting hungry," he said, apparently believing the conversation to be over, and started to look for the waiter with his eyes.

The brunette glared daggers at him. He wondered how in the hell Itachi was able to handle him just fine. Then it hit him. Naruto was enjoying himself. He just had to hope that he was right, and to bluff convincingly. And right now it was more important for him to force Uzumaki into doing what he told him to than getting the chapter.

"I give up," he muttered. "You won, I'm giving you back to Itachi," he added, trying to not look glad when he saw the hurt in blue eyes. _Jackpot_.

"I'll just ask Fugaku to transfer me back to you," the blonde opposed childishly.

"And I'll tell him that I can't control you. My father might be nice to you but he's not an idiot," he explained patiently, watching the vast array of emotions displaying on Uzumaki's face.

"Itachi never mentioned that you're a wuss," Naruto tried to challenge him but to no avail.

"But he might have mentioned that I don't like wasting my time on hopeless cases. You're not the only writer out there," he stated unapologetically and shrugged his shoulders.

The waiter approached their table, and Sasuke ordered his meal. Naruto said he wanted the same thing, evidently too panicked to even think his choice of dish through.

"...I'll do what you want me to," the man muttered angrily. Uchiha smirked smugly.

"I thought you preferred Itachi," he commented innocently. He hoped he wasn't pushing it too far.

"Just accept your little victory and shut up," the blonde hissed, his eyes glued to the table. "I'm risking my reputation just so you can get off to being canonically fucked by a fictional character," he said accusingly. Sasuke smiled victoriously. Well, now he'll have to solve _this_ problem without destroying the whole book. Somehow he believed it to be worth it. Uzumaki probably won't try to mess with him again.

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><p>A few days later Sasuke was once again pestered by his older brother. Itachi was clearly amused, and the younger Uchiha tried to think of a way to incorporate smuts into a detective story. He might had won this one battle but it will be all lost when his father will see the "improved" version of the story.<p>

"One step forward, two steps back," Itachi commented. Sasuke wondered how in the hell did he already know about the source of his misery. He didn't show the chapter to anyone yet.

"But at least he won't try to fuck with me again," he hissed. He regretted the fact that he didn't just accept the real chapter. He could've tried to break Naruto on some other occasion.

"Oh, but he just did," Itachi chuckled. Again. Sasuke wondered who took his brother and if this one will be lesser pain in the ass than the real one.

"What do you mean?" he questioned, keeping his gaze on the screen, and pretending that he wasn't interested.

"Father will inform you in a couple of minutes that all of your other writers will be transferred to other editors," the man stated simply. The younger brunette's jaw dropped.

"..what? Why?"

"Naruto asked him to make you his agent _and_ editor. You're becoming his goddamn secretary," he said. "Way to go, brother," he added.

"You can't be serious," Sasuke whispered.

"Oh, but I am. And I bet that father will leap with joy when he'll see the porn Naruto's going to have in his next book," he laughed.

* * *

><p>Sasuke knocked loudly on Naruto's doors, and the man opened him almost immediately with a cheeky grin on his face. He was evidently expecting the visit.<p>

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?!" the brunette vented his frustrations on the other man who just smiled at him and folded his arms.

"Well, you could say that _now_ I am the only writer out there," he stated in a singasong voice.

"Why are you trying to make my life miserable?" he inquired, and sat on the sofa, covering his face with the forearm.

"I'm not. My former agent resigned after she saw what you did to my book," Uzumaki explained merrily.

"And you thought that I'd make a perfect replacement for her?" Sasuke hissed.

"Well, I did offer you taking her place once," the blonde said and smiled to himself. Uchiha wondered what did he mean by that. Then it dawned on him. _He was sleeping with his agent._ "But this time it's because I don't think that anyone else should have to deal with your mess," he stated simply, and sat down next to the editor, patting him gently on the knee. Sasuke rubbed his face.

"She could've talked with me," he noticed. "I might have taken her concerns into account," the man muttered. Actually, it would be perfect. He would change the decision and save his face.

"She demanded that I change my editor," the blonde said quietly. "And I told her no, so she left," he added and smiled warmly. Sasuke eyed him angrily. What, was he supposed to feel gratitude now? "But, since you're my agent now, here's everything you need to know," Naruto chirped and reached for a folder that was lying on the coffee table. He opened it, and started to heap sheets of paper on Uchiha's lap. The brunette looked at the papers with disdain. "This is what I have planned for this and the next month-I'll also give you access to my e-mail account so you can check it again, these are the most important contacts from which I _always_ take calls, this is the list of my allergies…"

"Your _allergies_," Sasuke repeated. _This isn't happening._

"Yeah, you need to know this stuff when you're booking a room for me. I can't sleep on a pillow stuffed with feathers. Or when you're ordering me food. I can't eat citruses." the blonde stated dumbfounded.

"I'm not your babysitter," he yelled, and got up, papers scattering all over the floor. Uchiha eyed them angrily. "And why do you print everything out? It's fucking 21st century," he added pointlessly.

"Itachi told me you prefer to work on paper," Naruto answered, and picked up the pages. The brunette was almost touched by Uzumaki's stupid way of pretending that he cares. "Anyways," he resumed, not discouraged by Sasuke's outburst at all. "These are my preferences when it comes to booking a room, food, and stuff like that. This is the list of questions I'm _not_ answering in interviews-you'll need to give it to every interviewer, especially the hosts of the programmes that are broadcast live. During the first two weeks I'll help you, of course."

"What are you punishing me for?" Sasuke asked.

"Punishing you? Are you kidding me?!" Naruto shouted in disbelief. "First of all, after working with me virtually every writer will want you to work for him or her. Secondly, I'm putting up with your shit, and I have chosen you, the person that apparently despises me, over two people that actually liked working with me."

Sasuke stared at the blonde for a long time, feeling ashamed. He was technically right.

"You need to stop humiliating me," he blurted out.

"Sasuke, for fuck's sake, the first thing you've told me was that my chapter was shit. Then you've said that I was disappointing," Uzumaki complained.

"And you wrote some shit on my forehead. And you've written fifty fucking pages of all of my orifices being penetrated'" he said accusingly. The brunette reached into his bag and took out a crumpled piece of paper. He started to read aloud. "Sasuke moaned in pleasure as Menma's throbbing cock was thrusting into him. He raised his hips, wanting to be fully filled with the hot, almost burning, length. He arched his back and shuddered, unable to utter even one intelligible word despite the fact that he desired his lover to fuck him even harder. His weeping member twitched as..."

"God, stop it. I get it, all right?" Naruto interrupted the other man, and frowned, rubbing the bridge of his nose. Uchiha sighed and sat next to the blonde. He picked up the papers Uzumaki prepared for him and read them, wanting to distract himself. On the list of questions no interviewer could ever ask was just one position. Sasuke hid the paper, noticing that the writer was lurking over his shoulder. The brunette turned towards him. For the first time Naruto seemed sad and the look didn't suit him. "I actually know about you much more than you'll learn about me from these papers," the blonde whispered softly.

"Because Itachi is a blabbermouth, I presume," Uchiha replied.

"Only when it comes to you," the writer agreed and laughed. "He loves you, you know," he added cheerfully. "I can't see why, though. You're an ass," the man joked. Sasuke felt his jaw finally relaxing. He wasn't even aware that he was gritting his teeth.

"And I don't know how such an idiot can write so well," the brunette mocked him. Uzumaki smiled.

"So I _am _your favorite..."

"Shhh," Sasuke interrupted him. "We have to somehow incorporate that porn into the plot," Uchiha complained.

"I hoped we'll throw it out and forget about it completely," Naruto snickered. "But I see that you've grown attached to your fap material," he mocked the brunette, who discovered that the stupid remark didn't upset him.

"You'll have to change the guy's name," the brunette decided.

"What's wrong with Menma?" Uzumaki inquired, and hissed with pretended pain when Sasuke slapped him in the stomach. Hard stomach. Stomachs shouldn't be this hard when one was sitting. But then again, Uchiha already saw that particular one, and, after a moment of pondering over the possibility, he had to deem it probable. "Fine, your father doesn't have to learn about your fantasies," the blonde answered. "Why are you so keen on keeping it, though?"

"Itachi thinks it won't work," Uchiha admitted.

"So you're ignoring his experience and risking my career?" Naruto questioned and raised his eyebrow.

"Yeah. I tried to listen to his advice earlier and it didn't turn out very well for me," the brunette said. Uzumaki was quite easy to talk to when he wasn't an annoying brat.

"What happened?"

"I lost all of my writers and got stuck with just one idiot who wants me to memorize his _allergies_," Sasuke complained.

"Sounds shitty," the blonde agreed and chuckled lightly. "Although I know _your_ allergies," he added.

"Whatever you say," he said, and Naruto must had felt challenged because he raised his hand and started to enumerate them using fingers.

"Peanuts, dairy products, and tomatoes," he said decidedly. "But you really like tomatoes so every once in a while you eat a shitload of them and look as if someone poured boiling water on you," he added and grinned triumphantly at flustered brunette, who decided on becoming an only child as soon as possible. "And you're wearing contact lenses because some kid in the elementary school made fun of you for wearing glasses," Naruto continued.

"I'm shocked that you don't know the kid's name," Uchiha muttered under his nose.

"I do but saying it would make me seem creepy," the blonde laughed. Sasuke eyed him.

"So you're basically obsessed with me," he stated simply and folded his arms.

"Nah, Itachi is. I just have a pretty good memory," Uzumaki tried to defend himself. "And I thought about that porn plot. What if Sasuke was the killer?" he changed the topic.

"That's cheap," Uchiha decided.

"It's just overused. I could make it work," Naruto defended his idea.

"You can try," the brunette said. After all he didn't have to add the porn parts just then. "You'd have to rewrite the previous chapters."

"It's a good thing then that I will have my editor always by my side," the writer mused and Sasuke smiled softly. Perhaps it won't be _this_ bad.

* * *

><p>Sasuke changed his mind two weeks later. It was hell. Naruto was needy as fuck, and, on the top of that, he apparently had to appear <em>everywhere.<em> A conference? Sure. Morning TV? Why the fuck not. A comic con taking place in some god-forsaken town? Right on it. And, obviously, he had to make a goddamn lecture every single time. And yeah, he was writing them himself (and then he would say it without reading a single word and make it sound pretty darn amazing) but Sasuke had to supply him with sources, coffee and fucking groceries. And, of course, Naruto wouldn't go anywhere without his agent-Uchiha was dragged everywhere. And whenever Uzumaki was at home, the brunette had to do the editing part of his job. And now, since the blonde had some kind of creative frenzy, he would write _much_ more than he used to.

Right now they were in a theater-the writer claimed that their presence there was essential, and, as Sasuke soon found out, it wasn't. He wasn't even shocked. The blonde simply wanted to go see a show. Uchiha had to admit that it was a pretty good one-he always enjoyed Moliere, and the actors were well-known. Unfortunately, he was too tired to properly enjoy it.

"Sasuke," he heard the annoying whisper.

"What," he mumbled. Then he realized that he had to doze off. His head was lying on the blonde's shoulder. He raised it quickly.

"Yeah, you were snoring when you had your head tilted backwards. And you looked silly when you were resting it against the back of the seat of the nice lady in front of us. And she didn't like you drooling on it, " Naruto chuckled. Sasuke glanced quickly at the writer's jacket flap and noticed with terror that it was slightly moist. He wiped his lips. Other people were already leaving the theater.

"You could have woken me up," he complained.

"But you were tired. Otherwise you wouldn't fall asleep, I assume. The show was pretty good. I sincerely believed that it would be a treat for you for being such a good agent," the blonde explained himself. "But then you started snoring and I realized that I could have just let you have one evening for yourself," he added merrily. Uchiha sighed heavily. He started to miss the days when he had 'Uzumaki's #1 Fan' scribbled on forehead. At least back then Itachi wasn't laughing at him for being a paid escort for the blonde.


	3. Chapter 3

Sasuke slammed his keyboard in annoyance. Finally, after a whole month of working as Naruto's agent, he had a day off. A day off meant he could spend the day alone, working on Uzumaki's chapter. Obviously, Itachi couldn't miss the chance of ruining it.

"Sasuke," he muttered, lying on his brother's bed and playing with his phone. "Mother wants us to come eat dinner tonight," he reminded the other man. None of them were living with their parents but they both ended up living relatively close. In the same neighborhood, to be exact.

"I don't have time for it," he replied. The truth was that he didn't want to see father. Fugaku Uchiha finally learned about the changes that were made to Naruto's book. And he didn't like them even one bit. Sasuke would be probably forced to resign if it wasn't for the blond idiot. He sighed internally.

"You're lying," Itachi said decidedly, and raised eyebrow when he heard the doorbell. Sasuke shrugged shoulders, letting him know that he wasn't expecting any guests, and got up so he could open the doors. Behind them stood Naruto, his personal nemezis. Uchiha gritted his teeth.

"What do you want?" he questioned. The writer went inside, stepping over the brunette's leg, and invited himself into his bedroom. Sasuke followed him, catching a glimpse of his brother smiling knowingly.

"You didn't pick up your phone," Naruto whined and waved at Itachi. Then he looked at his agent, and grinned. "Sasuke wearing glasses is my new favorite thing," he said, addressing the older Uchiha. The younger brunette looked at his phone, and discovered that the battery died. He pinched the bridge of his nose-that was utterly unprofessional.

"He looks like a huge nerd," Itachi agreed with the writer, who also perched on the bed.

"The covers are stuffed with feathers," Sasuke said and sat in front of the computer again. He looked at the document disdainfully. How exactly was he supposed to work in these conditions? Itachi eyed him, not understanding what his brother was getting at.

"Thanks but I don't plan on staying long anyways." _Thank god._ "And Sasuke looks like a hot nerd," he corrected Itachi.

"Watch your mouth," the older brunette hissed decidedly.

"Don't you have anything better to do?" Sasuke asked both of them but only his brother felt inclined to answer.

"I'm free, four-eyes," he replied. "And I want to know what lie will you break mother's heart with just to avoid family dinner," he added.

"Oh, I need him," Uzumaki said merrily.

"What for?" Sasuke growled at him.

"My fridge is empty and I don't know where you buy those ramen noodles," he complained, and the younger Uchiha's blood boiled.

"So you're his maid now," Itachi stated with amusement. "You've hit the new low," he decided and chuckled. Sasuke could swear that this sound will haunt him for the rest of his life.

"And I'm also stuck and need someone to brainstorm with," the author added. _Couldn't you start with it?_

"I'm done with doing your groceries," Sasuke shouted. "If you had the time to come here, you could've went shopping as well," he whined.

"What was that thing about feathers?" Itachi inquired and frowned. He didn't like not knowing what other people were talking about. Uzumaki cheerfully informed him about his allergy, and the older Uchiha's eye twitched. "_This_ is the new low. You never stop amazing me, brother," he commented. "I'll just buy you new covers so you'll be able to pretend that you're cherishing a gift from your brother and not being his bitch," he stated calmly, and skillfully dodged the apple Sasuke threw at him. The fruit slightly spluttered on the wall, and Itachi looked unamused. "Naruto," he muttered, and the younger brunette noticed that the blonde was strangely startled. "I'm inviting you over to my parents' house for dinner. It's going to start at 4pm. You can bring Sasuke as your plus one," he offered politely. Then his expression changed into menacing one. "You won't refuse my invitation, will you?"

"Of course not," Naruto mumbled obediently.

"That's wonderful. And now, since everything is settled, I'll take my leave," he said and got up. "You don't have to worry about informing mother, I'll look to it," he added and left Sasuke's apartment.

The brunette eyed the writer hatefully. Uzumaki escaped with his eyes, and picked up the apple that was lying on the bed.

"Sasuke," he whined quietly. "I actually came here just to inform you that your phone was off," he blurted out.

"Sorry," Uchiha growled.

"And I already bought my groceries," he continued.

"Then why did you say you didn't?!" the editor shouted and hit the blonde on the head.

"I saw that you didn't want to go to the dinner, so I came up with an excuse," he whimpered.

"That was a lame ass excuse," Sasuke decided. "Especially since you agreed to go there anyways," he growled.

"Well, I can't say 'no' to Itachi," he complained.

"Why not?!" _You don't have any problems with opposing me._

"He's scary as fuck."

"No, he's just annoying."

"You're saying that because you've never seen his eyes," Naruto defended himself.

"I _saw_ his eyes, he's my brother."

"Yeah, but you're like the only person he has any feelings for. For the rest of us these eyes are dead, seriously, he'll smile at you, and his eyes are fucking dead. The only reason why I've never based any of my serial killers on him is that I was afraid that he might murder me for demasking him."

"You're an idiot," Sasuke realized and the realization depressed him.

"Do you know why me and Itachi ended up talking so much about you?" Naruto inquired, massaging his scalp.

"Enlighten me," Uchiha muttered and folded his arms. He was standing next to the bed, which looked like a total mess now.

"Because these were like the only moments when he was acting like a human being. Of course, he would get absurdly mad whenever I would laugh at you-and that was completely unfair because the stories were hilarious," the author mused, and Sasuke got angry at him. "But otherwise he was scary as fuck. He would appear out of nowhere and not say a word, and I would end up confessing all of my sins to him. He even threatened me once that I will end up dead with all of my books shoved up my ass," the blonde complained, and, completely misreading the reason behind Uchiha's frown, continued. "Of course, he was the best editor I had."

"What about me, dumbfuck," Sasuke growled.

"You're more of a friend," the writer chirped innocently, and he winced with pain, when he was once again hit in the head. "Seriously, I mean it," he said, once again not being able to understand why was the brunette angry at him.

"I'll have you acknowledge my skills, idiot," the editor threatened him, and finally unclenched his fist.

"Oh, yes, you're very good," Naruto agreed happily. "I prefer working with you, you're an actual human being," he stated, evidently hoping that it will fix everything. "And Sasuke, since we're visiting your parents, and I have all of my groceries in the car… do you think I could use your fridge until we're free again?" he asked.

"...fine," Uchiha decided, giving up on doing anything sensible today. Naruto left the apartment for a short moment, and came back with two bags full of food.

"Why are you stuck?" the brunette inquired, trying to not waste any more of his time.

"We'll deal with it when we'll be back at my place," the writer proposed, and sneezed. "Fuck feathers," he cursed, and Sasuke promised himself that he'll fill his entire flat with feathers. "So, is this dinner supposed to be some formal thing or what?" the man questioned.

"No, it's going to be awkward as hell," Uchiha muttered. Now he was stuck with the blonde for another two hours. First Itachi, then him. This day couldn't get worse.

"It'll be less awkward than when Itachi had to come out for you because you were too panicked to do it yourself," the man snorted. "Mother, father, Sasuke's gay," Uzumaki said, imitating Itachi's dull voice.

"Fuck you," the brunette growled and threw pillow at him. He felt kind of better when he saw it hit the stupid face right in the middle.

"You don't even know how hard it was to listen to him and not laugh," the writer mused. Uchiha noticed that his eyes were getting teary and red.

"Let's go to the living room," he proposed quietly. "Want some coffee or something?" he offered, and felt forced to look away when the blonde nodded with gratitude.

* * *

><p>The dinner was less of a failure than Sasuke expected it to be. Naruto was seated between him and Itachi, so he was too afraid to make any silly remarks, father wasn't allowed to discuss business while eating, brother pretended to be the most polite creature in existence, and mom looked happy. It could have gone much worse than that. And it would probably get that way if it wasn't for the blonde insisting that they had to return to work as soon as possible.<p>

The two men got Naruto's groceries out of Sasuke's fridge, and headed towards the writer's flat. Uchiha was actually getting used to it. He still missed his days as an editor, and he sometimes wondered how all of his other writers were doing but he had to admit that working for the blonde wasn't this bad. Even though whenever he was forced to reveal some of the details of his work it was embarrassing.

"So, you're stuck," Sasuke said.

"Yeah but we're not discussing it sober," the blonde replied, and started to pour vodka into glasses. "You know what they say-write drunk, edit sober."

"You just wanted someone to drink with," Uchiha realized. "Don't you have any friends?" he whined. He was once again forced to waste his time, and he hated it.

"My friends don't have time for it, they're working," the writer answered and handed the glass to Sasuke.

"_I_ am working, too," he complained, and sniffed the vodka, quickly regretting his decision.

"You are working for me," the man stated happily, and clinked his glass with the editor. "Cheers," he said and downed it in one go. Uchiha followed his example and frowned. "You want me to mix it with juice next time?" he proposed, and the brunette shook his head.

"So you're _not_ stuck," he said with a martyr face.

"Actually, I am. I started to rewrite the previous chapters since now Sasuke is the killer..."

"He's not Sasuke," Uchiha interrupted him, and poured himself another glass of vodka. Maybe getting wasted _was_ a way to survive this evening.

"I know but it's funnier this way," Naruto replied. "Anyways, since now he's the killer and since he and Menma are in a relationship..."

"I thought they were just fucking," the brunette noticed.

"Well, no-one can do this repeatedly and not get attached to the other person... at least Menma couldn't."

"You didn't have any problems with firing your former agent," Sasuke muttered, and Naruto smiled at him warmly.

"So you assume that we didn't have sex after she stopped working for me-because it was her who resigned," he stated in an annoyingly mocking tone, and the brunette started to wonder why did he even care. "But we've stopped way earlier so you're technically right," he added after a short pause. "Going back to my book-Sasuke and Menma have this relationship, and I thought that it would make Menma a complete idiot if he never suspected Sasuke. I have a whole bunch of red herrings but..."

"Naruto, your books are what people read when they are relaxing on beach," Uchiha interrupted again.

"Well, it doesn't mean that they have to be bad," the writer replied accusingly.

"But you're making this one into romance, and people like you for your crime fiction."

"You're the one, who added romance there," Naruto complained, and the brunette had to agree with him. "Coming back to Menma-what if he suspected Sasuke but he didn't want to believe in it so he wasted his time looking for another suspect?"

"_Cute_. But then people might see him as a failure," Uchiha noticed.

"Right. Then maybe he will kill Sasuke, and..."

"Are you seriously killing me off just so your character could get more interesting?" Sasuke questioned, and the blonde laughed at him.

"So Sasuke _is_ Sasuke," the writer uttered. "And I did think about turning it into a series, so... yeah."

"_Thanks_," the brunette muttered sarcastically. "But I guess that it would be a way out."

"But I don't think that Menma could really do this."

"You are _not_ allowed to pull 'Frodo throwing the One Ring into Mount Doom shit'" Sasuke forbid.

"You really _are_ a huge nerd. But you look really hot in glasses so I'll let it pass," the man joked.

"Stop fetishizing my glasses," the brunette growled. The bottle was already half empty.

"Itachi never told me how bad your eyesight was," Naruto mused and took off Uchiha's spectacles. Then Sasuke's world became blurry, and he could see the blonde putting the eyeglasses on. The brunette hit him in the forehead. "I bet you had to use echolocation to do that," he mocked Sasuke. Uchiha snapped the glasses up and put them on again. He still didn't know what tempted him to not wear the contact lenses.

"You've said Menma couldn't kill Sasuke. Why?" he resumed the main topic.

"Killing someone you love can't be easy."

"So he loves him now?"

"Not now but he will by the end of the book. And I don't know what to do with it. Maybe he will join Sasuke," the writer pondered over the stupid possibility.

"You could write it differently," Sasuke proposed. "Make the reader know that Sasuke is the bad guy from the very beginning."

"And then what?"

"And Menma will be blind to it."

"That's... not stupid."

"Well, what did you expect?! I'm drunk and tired," Uchiha complained.

"But that really wasn't stupid. That would force me to change pretty much everything but it might be worth it," Naruto pondered. He smooched the brunette's lips quickly.

"What do you think you're doing?" Sasuke growled at the other man, who stared at him blankly. His lips felt hot, his lungs heavy from all the breaths he refused to let out.

"I'm thanking you," he said. "But this time I'm not letting you bite me," he added happily. "So, if Menma will be blind to everything, then I'll have to portray him as a more of a badass in the beginning."

"It would be refreshing, I guess," Uchiha agreed after a while; he still didn't regain his composure after the kiss. It was much easier to do so after the first time, and the first kiss was much less innocent than this stupid smooch. The brunette bit the inside of his cheek. "Normally the detective has a gloomy backstory-he's an alcoholic, his wife or partner died, or whatever, but someone who didn't fuck up in the past, and will during the course of the book is a nice touch," he decided.

"Yeah, the first book of the series will be the gloomy backstory," Naruto shouted with excitement and poured them another glass.

"Then I guess Sasuke still has to die," Uchiha commented, and rested his head on the back of the couch. His heart was pounding in chest, and the editor realized that if he wasn't working with the blonde, he would jump him right there and then. He looked at the other man out of the corner of his eye, and sighed heavily. He seriously needed some time apart from him. For the last month they were seeing each other on a daily basis, and somehow Naruto's idiocy grew on him.

"I'll make him go with a bang," the blonde promised.

"Yeah," he agreed and closed his eyes.

"Goodnight, sweet prince," the writer joked, and Sasuke could feel him getting up from the couch. Up until now he didn't even notice that their legs were touching but now the sides of his thighs were getting unpleasantly cold.

"I'm not sleeping," he said, and cocked his eye at already standing Naruto. He regretted ever closing them. Somehow he felt more drunk now.

"I'm going out for a smoke," the author informed him. He didn't smoke a lot, Uchiha saw him do that only prior to public appearances.

"I'll bite you again if you'll force me to kiss an ashtray," he blurted out. The blonde stared at him in a weird way.

"So you're saying that I may kiss you again if I won't smoke," he concluded carefully, and hid the cigarettes into desk drawer. Then he leaned over the brunette, standing behind the back of the couch, and resting his forearms next to Sasuke's head. Uchiha looked deeply into blue eyes. He felt as if time slowed down. He heard each and every of his heartbeats, he could see the tanned face coming closer to him. One part of his brain tried to force his arms into pushing Uzumaki away but his hands were so incredibly heavy that he wasn't able to will himself into raising them. Naruto's lips finally touched his-at first shyly, as if they were a startled butterfly, and then, after a short while, the kiss became more firm. The editor felt two strong hands cupping his chin and pulling it upwards, and then the blonde's tongue entered his mouth, and his own answered softly. It tasted of alcohol and apple juice, and was mesmerizingly moist. They clinked their teeth as the kiss became more aggressive, and Uchiha started to run out of breath. Naruto pulled away abruptly, and gasped for air.

"I didn't tell you to stop," Sasuke muttered, and the blonde grinned widely. Then he went around the sofa, and placed himself over the editor's lap. He was pleasantly heavy and hot, and Uchiha could swear that for a brief moment he could feel his erection pressing against the stomach.

"Are you sure about it?" Naruto panted into his ear. _I'm not._

"Did I stutter?" the brunette growled back, and grabbed the back of Uzumaki's head, feeling the soft blond hair with his long fingers.

"You know what they say about people who are control freaks in bed, right? That they're overcompensating for the lack of control in their lives," the writer murmured mockingly, and then whimpered gently when Sasuke bit his ear delicately. The editor moved his mouth towards the blonde's neck, and brushed his lips over the soft skin, finding erratically pulsating vein in the process. He rested his lips against it, enjoying the sensation. Uchiha dig his nails into the author's back, and noticed, not without some pride, that Naruto's breaths became shorter, louder and more throaty. He pulled the other man closer, pressing him against the bulge in his pants, letting him feel it. "So, um, you want to go all the way today?" the blonde whispered, and it was clearly a panicked whisper. Sasuke let go off the blonde as if his body burned him.

"You're the one sending mixed signals," he complained and pushed Naruto from his lap, making him land on the other part of the couch.

"Hey, I just wasn't planning _this_," he whined but didn't move. _Me neither._

"Forget about it, I'm leaving," Uchiha stated firmly and got up… less firmly. He swayed to one side but, nonetheless, he was able to stand more or less properly.

"Let's talk this through," the writer proposed, watching the brunette move towards the doors.

"It was just a whim," he assured the other man, and put on his shoes. "Don't worry about it," he added later, buttoning his jacket up. "It won't happen again."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thank you kindly for all of your reviews (so all 5 of them :D), for all the follows and favorites. The next chapter for this story may come a little bit later (but it's still pretty soon in comparison to some of the stories _I_ observe) because I have to write another chapter for my other story. So... don't abandon me. Right now there's like 50 of you (and that's _sad_) but I really like this story, so I'll continue it no matter what. In the worst case scenario I'll be my only reader. Hah. **

**But seriously-review. Pretty please :)**

* * *

><p>Sasuke went into his apartment, and slammed the doors behind him. He kicked off his shoes, and took off his jacket, letting it fall on the floor. He eyed it with disdain, and, after a while, he picked it up and put it where it belonged. He entered his bedroom, and lay lifelessly on the messy bed. He felt the phone vibrating in the jeans pocket, so he pulled it out, read the caller's id, and decided to ignore him. He didn't feel like talking to Naruto.<p>

Uchiha clenched his fist, and cursed his stupidity. He wondered _why_ did he ever think that it was a good idea. Uzumaki stopped calling, and the brunette noticed that he had gotten some new text messages. Noticing that they were all from the writer, he closed the inbox without reading any of them. Sasuke went into phone directory and called his brother, who picked up almost immediately. _Fuck your perfection._

"Yeah?" he muttered questioningly, and Sasuke could hear him type something.

"Itachi," he mumbled quietly. He didn't call his brother too often. The last time he did it was at least a year ago.

"You're drunk," Itachi noticed. "Of course you're drunk, you never call me sober," he snorted accusingly. "What's wrong?"

"How do you know it's something wrong," the younger brunette whined.

"Call me psychic. Or used to it. Your pick."

"I tried to fuck Naruto," Sasuke confessed.

"Sometimes I still can't believe you're not adopted," the older brother scolded him gently. "Want me to visit you?"

"No," the man replied. He heard a sound meaning that another person was trying to call him. "He keeps calling," Sasuke added and released a tired sigh.

"I'm not even going to tell you that what you did was unprofessional..."

"Yeah, it was really nice of you to not do that," the younger Uchiha retorted.

"...but what exactly happened? It can't be this bad if he's calling you."

"He..." Sasuke tried to explain but he was at complete loss with words. What, was he supposed to say that Naruto kissed him, and then, after a moment of groping, the blonde hinted that he wasn't feeling like having sex on that particular day? The brunette probably wouldn't even care if he didn't know that the falstart meant goddamn disqualification. Their dynamics had to change since the transition between "we're working together" and "we're fuck buddies" wasn't fluent. They were in limbo-they couldn't go back and they couldn't move forward. "I think I might end up jobless," he whispered, attempting to make it sound as a joke.

"You're not," Itachi disagreed firmly.

"Well, since he became my only one…"

"Are you trying to guilt trip me into sharing my writers with you?" the older brunette asked in a soft voice. "And when I won't agree, you'll call mother and tell her that I'm being mean to you?"

"I'm not five years old," Sasuke replied angrily. He started to regret calling his brother.

"Sometimes I wish you were," the other Uchiha said unexpectedly. "Open the doors," he added after a while, and Sasuke allowed himself to smile, knowing that his brother won't see it. He made sure he had a frown on his face when he greeted Itachi.  
>"Why do you always end up coming even if I tell you not to?" he inquired.<p>

"I enjoy seeing your sad face," the man answered and flicked his brother's forehead. "So, what did he do?" he questioned and headed towards the living room.

"He said he doesn't want to have sex with me?" Sasuke muttered uncertainly, not sure that it was completely true. "He basically asked me if I wanted to go all the way…" he added after a while.

"And I assume that you wanted to," Itachi uttered. He was clearly not enjoying the discussion about his brother's sex life.

"At first it seemed that he wanted it, too," he replied sharply, hearing the phone buzz once again.

"Just pick it up. Otherwise he'll come here again," the older brunette said. Then, after noticing that Sasuke clearly didn't know what to do or say, he grabbed the phone and answered the call. "Itachi," he murmured in his best tired voice. "Yeah," he replied to something Naruto said, and smirked. "The idiot thinks he called the wrong Uchiha," he told Sasuke. The younger brother chuckled unwillingly. "Wait, he's calling again," Itachi whispered with amusement. "What is it again? … Don't worry about it."

"...again?" Sasuke questioned.

"I can't see why you'd want to fuck him," the older brunette mused and smiled at his brother. "Considering your taste in men, father should be glad that you're gay. Otherwise you'd produce stupid offspring."

"...how did you know I was gay?" Sasuke asked after a longer pause. "When you told our parents-how did you know?"

"I could pretend that you can't hide anything from me," Itachi muttered. "But I actually saw you and your boyfriend groping one another."

"Sorry," the younger Uchiha replied.

"Yeah, I had to stop myself from coming over there and handing you a pack of condoms," he stated and winced his eyes. "What is it, Naruto?" he inquired, this time answering his own phone. "Just stop calling me," he growled, and smirked at his brother when Uzumaki disconnected. "This one seems to be even more stupid," Itachi complained. "And I don't think that you have to worry about anything," he added and handed Sasuke his buzzing phone.

"Sasuke," the brunette whispered hoarsely.

"Finally," Naruto sighed with relief. "I've accidentally called your brother like three times."

"What do you want?" he asked, not wanting to tell the blonde that he actually didn't.

"You've disappeared before I even had time to think," Uzumaki whined.

"That would take too long," the younger Uchiha answered. "I'll see you tomorrow," he promised after a pause.

"...so we're cool?"

"...yeah," Sasuke agreed and disconnected. _Back to square one._

"See, there's no reason to panic," Itachi stated and lay more comfortably on the sofa. "But I guess that your pride had to suffer when he told you no," he added, withstanding Sasuke's angry glare.

"Everytime I start to believe you're fine just the way you are, you say something like this," the younger brunette complained.

"I guess it was because of the glasses," Itachi muttered, not responding to his brother's comment. "I wouldn't fuck a nerd neither."

"You wouldn't fuck anyone."

"And a nerd like you would make the top of my unfuckable list. That has to mean something."

"_This_ is why I never call you when I'm sober," Sasuke decided. "There's something wrong with you on so many levels that I don't even want to think about it," he sighed. Itachi shrugged his shoulders unapologetically.

"I'm hungry," he complained, and got up, heading towards his brother's kitchen.

"Then go home," Sasuke whined.

"Make me," he answered sharply, and the younger Uchiha could hear him rummaging through his fridge. He rubbed his temples. He was well aware that any resistance was futile, and that in the morning he'll have to clean up the mess his brother will leave there. Sasuke promised himself to never call his brother again.

* * *

><p>A week later Sasuke and Naruto were at a comic convention. Uzumaki was supposed to be one of the speakers, and Uchiha could finally feel proud of himself-he was contacted by Neji Hyuga, a director, who was interested in making an adaptation of one of the writer's previous books. He was also able to learn that Neji's cousin, Hinata, was the investor. And, what was even more interesting, Hinata was a diehard fan of Naruto.<p>

The two men never really discussed what happened between the two of them on that night-when Naruto tried to talk about it, Sasuke told him that he was drunk and horny, and the blonde seemed available, and Uzumaki frowned at that but he didn't say anything. Somehow, they were able to return to their usual bickering. Uchiha grew distant-he never before had noticed exactly how often would Naruto touch him in one way or another-he would pat him, squeeze his arm, sit as close to him as possible, play with his hair-generally, he would invade Sasuke's personal space in every way possible. The brunette started to defend himself against this-he didn't want the writer to think that there could be anything between them. The blonde probably didn't like this because sometimes the editor could see the sad look in his eyes but after a couple of days they just stopped touching, and Uchiha believed that it was for the best. Sometimes he would feel angry that Naruto gave up so fast, but he had to admit that he was partially responsible for it. He wouldn't even smack the other man, he was just ensuring that between him and his client was enough space.

"You have a meeting with the Hyugas later this afternoon," Sasuke reminded Uzumaki.

"You're not coming?" the author questioned, turning his gaze from a comic book stand to his companion.

"They explicitly said that they want to talk with you alone," Uchiha sighed. "Just don't agree to anything or sign anything while I'm not there," he added. Some fans approached Naruto, and the blonde signed their copies of books with a huge grin on his face. The brunette was practically invisible to the people. Just like his work. He sighed with irritation.

"All right, I won't fuck this up," the writer promised solemnly. "How much time do I have before this starts?"

"Two hours. But you have to make yourself look representable," he muttered. "So go to your room, and prepare. Hinata apparently adores you. And she's rich. You could probably milk her dry if you weren't an idiot."

"I'll let _you_ milk her," Naruto answered, unhappy about the fact that he had to leave the comic con.

"She doesn't like _me_. And Neji's a dick," Uchiha replied.

"Can't you just come and pretend that you didn't get their request to not come?" the blonde complained. "They will probably confuse me with some legal talk and I'll end up selling my soul to them."

"Just tell them that you need to discuss everything with your agent," Sasuke whined. Itachi would probably show up there, order half of the menu knowing the Hyugas were paying, and make their lives miserable. Then he would make the Hyugas sell their souls to him. "And don't drink any alcohol," he added. "You'll probably end up drinking too much and embarrass yourself."

"That happened only _once_," Naruto retorted. He got completely wasted during a press interview, and if Uchiha wasn't nearby, it could end catastrophically.

"That was one time too much," the brunette answered calmly. "Tell me, when you're done," he ordered Uzumaki.

* * *

><p>Sasuke was lying in his hotel bed. The trip was tiring, the comic con was tiring-especially since Naruto refused to just appear when he was supposed to appear, and decided that he'll attend as many activities as possible, the Hyuugas were tiring, and the brunette was also tired of constantly checking his phone. He opened his inbox by accident-the text messages from the blonde were still there, still unread. He pondered over the possibility of deleting them but eventually gave up to the curiosity, and opened them, starting from the first one.<p>

"_Are you mad?"_

"_It's not like I didn't want to have sex with you, I was just surprised. Pick up your phone."_

"_Please don't get mad. You don't even know how happy I was when you told me I can kiss you."_

"_Pick up your phone."_

"_I was in love with you before I even met you."_

"_I hope you're not freaking out right now."_

"_Just forget it and pick up your phone."_

Sasuke looked at his phone screen with eyes wide open. His stomach felt heavy, and his heart was pounding in his chest. He got up quickly and started to pace around the room in short steps. He regretted reading the texts. _Just now, where we returned to normal_. The brunette cursed loudly. The doors to his room opened abruptly, and it startled him.

"Is something wrong?" Naruto asked in the dumbest way possible, and Uchiha could feel the blood leaving his face. _What do I do now?_

"No, everything's fine," he lied. Probably mentioning the fact that he just learned that the writer was in love with him, and that yes, he was freaking out, wasn't the best idea. He was one week too late for that. "How did the meeting go?" he inquired politely, trying to regain his composure. _Nothing's changed._

"It was great," the blonde stated, carefully weighing every word. "Are you sure that everything's fine? You don't look fine."

"I have a headache," he lied again. "What do you mean great?" he asked, wanting the writer to finally change subject.

"Lie down," Uzumaki advised, and pulled Sasuke towards the bed. The brunette cringed as Naruto's hand embraced his wrist firmly. _Don't do this_. He rested his head on the pillow, his heart racing as other Uzumaki's hand gently touched his forehead, checking for fever. "They invited me to a party today but if you're not feeling well…"

"I'm fine," Sasuke replied quickly. "You should go there."

"I'm not going to leave you here all alone," Naruto opposed.

"I'm just working for you," Uchiha answered, somehow feeling that the words sounded harsher than he meant them to be. "What did you learn?"

"They gave me a bunch of papers. Hinata wants me to write the script myself, and Neji thinks someone more skilled should do it," he mumbled.

"Writing novels isn't the same as writing movie scripts," Sasuke agreed with the director. "You'd probably need some help."

"I have you," Uzumaki muttered and lay down next to the brunette, who felt even more panicked. He could sense the heat emanating from the body next to him, he could swear that he knew exactly where the other man's hand was. He could probably find it with his eyes closed. "But this movie will delay the premiere of my next book," the writer complained. "I'd have to work at it, show up for promotion…"

"I thought you were excited," Uchiha noticed quietly, and rubbed his temples.

"Maybe you want some pill?" Naruto proposed, and lay on his stomach, resting his head on the forearms and looking into the brunette's eyes.

"I don't," Sasuke answered sharply. "Aren't you excited about the movie?"

"I was but now it seems like a lot of work, and I already have to rewrite the book," he whined. "And the book is more important to me."

"Your books would sell better if there was a movie," the editor suggested.

"But I would have to spend half of my time _there_," the man uttered. "And I feel good _here_."

"In this room?" Sasuke tried to joke. "I bet they have hotels there as well."

"You _know_ what I mean," Uzumaki stated decidedly. "I'll call them and tell them I can't come."

"And what will you tell them?" the brunette mocked him. "That you're giving up this opportunity because your agent has a headache?"

"Why not? The reason's as good as any other," Naruto decided.

"I don't have a headache," Sasuke snapped.

"Then what's wrong?" he questioned and raised his eyebrow.

"Nothing."

"I _know_ something's wrong."

"You _can't_ be serious about being in love with me," the brunette shouted, and the blue eyes widened with shock.

"...why?" he inquired quietly.

"Because it doesn't work this way," Uchiha explained. "You can't just randomly decide that you're in love with me. And, even if you were, you shouldn't be telling me this."

"Why wouldn't I tell you this?" the blonde asked, and he seemed to be sincerely surprised by the outburst.

"I _work_ for you," Sasuke growled.

"It didn't stop you from jumping me," Uzumaki noticed accusingly.

"That was different," the editor said decidedly, knowing that it really wasn't. "And I didn't _jump_ you, you were the one, who started everything," he added after a longer pause. Naruto eyed him blankly.

"Why are we even talking about it? I thought everything was settled," he stated. "Like, I heard you the first time. You were drunk and horny, and I looked available. I can live with this. There's no need to put me down _again_," he complained. _I didn't know you were in love with me back then!_

"Fine," Uchiha snorted. "Let's forget about it."

"Why does everything have to be so high pressure with you?" Naruto whined.

"Just drop it," the brunette pleaded. "You should go to the party," he advised Uzumaki, who smiled at him uncertainly.

"Then you're going with me," he declared, and Sasuke failed to reject the invitation.

* * *

><p>The party was awful. All the people were stuck up, Naruto was seated on the other end of the table next to the Hyuga heiress, who kept smiling at him shyly, and Sasuke was sitting next to Neji, who apparently wanted to compare dick sizes with Uchiha.<p>

"I hear you've fallen out of grace," the pale-eyed man murmured. Sasuke glared at him angrily.

"What makes you think so?" he inquired politely, doing his best at not frowning and not hitting the stupid bastard.

"You've been reduced to a mere agent," he chatted. "And my father always believed you'd start a publishing company of your own," he added and smiled softly.

"Your father, who kept working for your uncle his entire life?" Uchiha questioned. "Even though they were twins? That's cute," he continued, enjoying the angry look on Hyuga's face.

"You suck as an agent," Neji decided. "One would think that you'd at least try to not humiliate yourself further and do your job the way you should but you keep offending the director that's supposed to work on our precious Uzumaki's film."

"You're doing this because Hiashi asked you to," Sasuke muttered. "And he asked you to because he wants your cousin to be happy. It's not like you have anything to say in it."

Neji shot him a furious stare and shut up. Now the brunette was left alone with his thoughts and ridiculously expensive food. The worst thing was that it wasn't even tasty, it was just a show off. Who would actually enjoy ice creams sprinkled with gold?

Uchiha stole a glance at Naruto, who seemed to have the time of his life-Hinata finally relaxed enough to ask him some questions (and Sasuke was pretty sure that the relaxation should be attributed to wine), and the questions were apparently ingenious because the blonde always had to spend at least one minute to think his answer through. That was a novelty. Whenever someone in the audience would ask him _anything_ after his lecture or speech, he would reply immediately. The brunette sighed heavily.

Why would Naruto say something as cheesy as 'I was in love with you before I even met you'? The obvious answer was that Sasuke had Itachi to thank for that. The brunette cursed under his breath, trying to entertain himself by destroying the tartlet that was served to him. He crushed its shortcrust pastry edges with fork, and stabbed the filling. Neji looked at him in a weird way, and Uchiha glared daggers at him. He flinched, when he felt someone patting him on shoulder.

"What are you doing?" Naruto asked him in a cheerful voice. Sasuke put a polite smile on his face.

"I'm chatting with Neji," he lied, and Hyuga apparently wanted to point that out. "He's genius," he added, and the long-haired brunette seemed to agree with that so he didn't say anything.

"Yeah, he is," the blonde nodded readily. "I think you'd like Hinata. I've been discussing my new book with her, and she has some _great_ ideas," he confessed, and Sasuke wanted to kill him.

"Do you think that you should reveal the details of your unpublished book?" he questioned instead, and the writer scratched his head apologetically.

"I do it with you," he stated simply.

"Because you're supposed to do it with me," Uchiha growled.

"What, are you jealous?" Uzumaki joked. _Yes._

"No. But don't be shocked when the plot leaks," he muttered.

"Hinata wouldn't do something so atrocious," Neji opposed. _Yeah, we totally needed you in this conversation._

"Whatever," Naruto decided and left Sasuke alone again. The brunette pinched the bridge of his nose, and, seeing Neji's curious stare, cleared his throat.

"I have to go," he growled quietly, and got up. It was already late, and they were supposed to be up early. And someone had to wake the damn idiot up.

* * *

><p>Sasuke couldn't fall asleep. He kept fidgeting in his bed, still not able to come to terms with the stupid text message. He was opening it again every ten minutes, and rereading it, hoping that it will magically change into something else. He wasn't sure <em>why<em> would it help. Naruto was apparently already past that, and, if Uchiha wasn't an idiot, he would be, too. He cursed under his breath, and threw the phone off the bed, watching it fall on the rug with a soft thump.

After another sleepless hour he heard the doors to his room opening, and his heart started pounding loudly because of irrational fear that this time the axe murderer finally found him and will chop his head off. He looked over his shoulder, and saw Naruto. Some part of him preferred the axe murderer.

"What do you want?" he murmured.

"I wanted to check up on you before I go to sleep," the blonde muttered, and offhandedly lay next to him.

"You've been smoking," Sasuke complained.

"Hinata's father treats me as if I was some kind of puppy he wants to pamper her with," Uzumaki whined, not responding to what the editor said.

"So what?" he asked.

"I wanted to believe that someone saw me as a good investment," he muttered. "And _why_ do you care if I smoke? This time you're not drunk."

"Fuck off," Uchiha growled, and turned away from the man. He decided to stare at the boring yellow wall for the rest of his life.

"Why did you ask me about it today? Like, it's been a whole week."

"Why does it matter?" he inquired angrily.

"I don't know," he blurted out, obviously hurt. "But if it doesn't then you shouldn't be so agitated about it."

"I won't," Sasuke promised. He noticed that if he looked close enough, he was able to notice a woman trapped in the wallpaper.

"Great. I'm seeing Hinata tomorrow. Let me know when I have time for it," the blonde muttered and got up. "Goodnight, bastard," he added and left the room. Uchiha pondered over the fact that he fell from prince to bastard in less than a week. _You've moved on quick enough._


	5. Chapter 5

Sasuke stood in the doorway, not believing his eyes. He felt an irrational anger overcoming him, and if it wasn't for years of training, it would be showing on his face. Naruto stared at him in a weird way, and, as the uncomfortable silence lasted, he got up from his couch and showed the brunette to follow him into the kitchen. Uchiha dropped the shopping bags on the floor, and made his move to walk away but the blonde grabbed his arm, and practically pulled him into the empty room.

"What is it again?" Uzumaki inquired in a tired voice, and the editor couldn't believe his insolence.

"I'm _not_ buying groceries for you _and_ your girlfriend," the man hissed.

"What are you talking about?" Naruto shouted, immediately covering his mouth with hand, as if hoping that it will stop Hinata from hearing them. The goddamn Hyuga heiress was sitting in the blonde's living room as if she belonged there.

"You've heard what I've said. And now I'm leaving," Sasuke growled, and pulled his arm from the other male's grip.

"You can't leave," the writer objected quietly.

"Watch me."

"You yourself said that you didn't want me to sign anything without you. And _now_ you're throwing tantrums for no fucking reason," the blonde complained.

"No fucking reason?!" Sasuke yelled, and Naruto shot his eyes at him, as if he was trying to order him to be quieter. "You're making me do shopping for you and your fucking girlfriend. That's _not_ my job," he whispered angrily.

"You've been avoiding me for the last week," the blonde whined. "And she's here just to sign the contract with me," he added.

"Then _why_ didn't you meet in some other place? Do you really believe that your goddamn apartment is the right place to sign anything?"

"She wanted to see it," Uzumaki answered, and massaged his temples. "I don't fucking get you. First you tell me to milk her dry," he said so quietly that Sasuke had to lean towards him to understand the words. "And now you're angry when I'm doing it."

"_This_ is what it is?" the brunette yelled again. "You're prostituting yourself," the man realized. He couldn't believe it. For the whole week after the comic con, Naruto was seeing Hinata on every fucking day. Of course, he would even invite Uchiha so he could bask in their glorious romance. However, Sasuke didn't want to.

"I'm _not_. She's a very nice person, you'd like her if you gave her a chance," the man mumbled. "And frankly, I'm tired of your scheming. I'll just agree to whatever she proposes and call it a day," he stated and left the kitchen, leaving Uchiha alone in there.

The brunette sat on a chair, resting his head on a table. He hated himself for ever reading the damn text. It gave him ideas-wrong ideas. And now he had to witness blooming love between Naruto and fucking Hyuga. He wasn't sure, how much time he spent in there feeling sorry for himself. Probably too much because Uzumaki returned.

"She left," he uttered. "And she wants you to read the contract so it's still not signed. And now you'll tell me what the fuck is wrong with you."

The writer sat opposite of him, playing with his hands and waiting for an answer. Since Sasuke didn't feel like talking, the blonde got up and started to unpack the bags with groceries. After he finished, he sat down again, patiently eying Uchiha.

"I have a whole night," Naruto muttered. The brunette didn't reply, and the author was just sitting there for at least ten minutes without saying a word. "You've made her feel bad," he whispered accusingly.

"I don't care," the editor retorted.

"You _should_ care. Maybe shopping isn't in the job description but talking with the woman that pays for my movie _is_."

"Then fire me," he murmured. It finally dawned on him. If he was to be fired, he would be free. He wouldn't have to see Hinata _ever_ again, he would find himself a job somewhere else, possibly on the other side of the world, and forget the whole thing. It would be perfect.

"I'm not firing you," Uzumaki answered, and let out a tired sigh. "Seriously, Sasuke, what's going on? You used to be all about acting professionally. Do you have any problems? Maybe I can help you? Or perhaps you just want someone to talk to?"

"Everything's fine."

"No, it's not. You're avoiding me, you're being rude to Hinata, and you didn't even want to hear her suggestions about the new book."

"Just make _her_ your editor," he uttered, and raised his head.

"She wasn't even trained for this," Naruto noticed. "Wait, is this about Hinata? Are your families some kind of rivals?"

"No," Uchiha replied, hoping that the writer will think that he answered both of his questions, and not just the last one.

"It's not like I'll let you not tell me why you're acting like this. We can't work like this."

He was probably right. Sasuke counted mentally to one hundred, rubbed his cheeks, and stared into the blue eyes.

"Everything's fine now. I'll call Hinata and apologize to her. Then I'll read the contract, and tell you what I think of it," he said in one breath. The blonde smiled at him warmly.

"Do you want some tea?"

"I'm still leaving," Uchiha answered, got up, left the kitchen, and collected the papers lying on the coffee table.

"No, you're not," Naruto shouted, and blocked the doorway with his body. "You're not leaving until you tell me why you're acting like a bloody drama queen."

The brunette cocked his eye at Uzumaki.

"You can't keep me in here against my will," he replied calmly, waiting for the other man to move. The blonde exhaled loudly, and went back into the room, laying on the sofa and covering his face with his hands.

"For fuck's sake, if it wasn't so ridiculous, I'd say that you're jealous of Hinata," he murmured. Sasuke shot him a shocked stare. "Seriously, you started to avoid me the moment she appeared. And now you're losing your shit because she happened to be in my place."

"It _is_ ridiculous," the editor agreed and cleared his throat.

"Then I'm sorry but I'm out of ideas," Naruto whispered, evidently giving up on finding the reason behind Uchiha's behavior. The brunette turned away from him, ready to leave. He shouldn't have acted like this but now it couldn't be helped. Sasuke cursed his idiocy and left the apartment.

* * *

><p>Sasuke looked through the documents Hinata brought with her. He had to admit that the contract seemed rather generous-not only would Naruto get a quite decent pay but he would also have a lot to say when it came to how the movie would turn out like. The screenplay was to be written by someone else but Uzumaki had the right to change the parts he didn't like. He was also to be participating in casting the crew, and, generally, had the last word when it came to <em>everything<em>. Uchiha knew that Neji would never agree to something like this-he didn't like other people fucking up his work, and the brunette didn't blame him.

The editor sighed, and, knowing that it couldn't be avoided, phoned the blonde, who picked up on the third try.

"You can thank the Hyuga heiress," Sasuke murmured.

"...she's not the heiress," Naruto muttered blankly.

"Of course she is, she's the eldest," the man disagreed, wondering _why_ would they discuss it.

"The company will be inherited by Hanabi, her younger sister," the writer explained, and cleared his throat. "I don't know how it works in your world but I guess that's kind of a big deal."

"...it is," the brunette agreed unwillingly. He felt somewhat sorry for the woman.

"...what will happen to you?" the writer inquired after a longer pause. Apparently he wasn't interested in what Sasuke thought about the contract. _Typical_.

"What do you mean?" Uchiha asked, and sat more comfortably in his chair. He didn't remember when was the last time they actually talked, and he realized that he had missed it.

"I assume that Itachi will inherit the publishing house," the blonde suggested. "So what will happen to you? Will you work for your brother?"

"_No,_" the editor answered without second thought. "I want to start my own company," he added after a while. "Right now I'm a majority shareholder in some of the smaller companies-I'll be able to use that later," he explained.

"So you'll be rivals?"

"I guess so. It's not like he doesn't expect it, though," Sasuke replied. "Why do you care?"

"Then what will happen to me?"

"You sold your soul to the Uchiha," the brunette retorted and smiled warmly, knowing that no-one will see him. "Or _your name_, to be precise."

"So you looked through my contract?" Uzumaki inquired, sounding as if he was angry but Uchiha could hear him smiling, and it made him feel better.

"I might have," the editor said, trying to sound enigmatic and failing. "If you publish under your name, there's a shitload of penalties. But if you'd write under a pseudonym…"

"So you want me to refuse my name," the blonde mused.

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet," Sasuke chuckled.

"And you'd chosen to do Juliet's part," Naruto snorted. "What, should I climb your balcony now?"

"I don't have a balcony," the brunette answered, glad that nobody will see him blushing. Then he mentally slapped himself across the face, forcing himself to face the reality. Uzumaki already gave up on him, and was pursuing Hinata now. And there was nothing he could do to change it, what was probably for the best because he shouldn't even try to do so.

"It's a shame because my climbing skills are sick," the blonde replied laughing.

"I've looked through the contract, and I believe that it's quite generous. Sign it as it is," the man said, returning to the topic they _should_ be talking about.

"...fine," the writer agreed. He seemed somewhat unhappy. "I'll see you tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah," Uchiha confirmed, and disconnected after saying goodbye. He hated how Naruto made him feel lonely. Sasuke didn't need anyone before, everything was fine the way it was, he had his job, his plans for the future… and now it all felt empty, meaningless. He even started to envy Hinata who fucked up hard enough to be finally free and do whatever she wanted.

The brunette pitied her-she was to be the first Hyuga who lost her firstborn rights. The family will still probably use her as their mascot-the woman was famous for her charity work, and if it wasn't for her, the Hyugas wouldn't have such a good PR, but she was still a failure. Sasuke felt even more sorry for Neji, who, even though the editor hated to admit it, really was brilliant. Probably seeing Hinata screw up triggered him. And then there was Hanabi-a young woman who apparently spent all of her time in work. Uchiha never saw her anywhere, she was always busy. From what he heard, she was a CEO in one of the subsidiaries. Sasuke sighed heavily. He envied her, too.

* * *

><p>When he came into Naruto's house on the next day, he saw blonde already packed. Uzumaki was to be a host in a literary award show because he was the last year's winner. The show and the party were to be held in a neighboring city on the next day but the two men had to leave one day earlier because the blonde obviously had to prepare himself and see some people.<p>

"I called the hotel today, and made sure that they prepared everything as usual," Sasuke informed the writer, and looked through his notebook, wondering whether he remembered about everything.

"Yeah, I'm not sleeping there," Naruto answered, reading this year's winner's book. He didn't even raise his eyes from the pages. Uchiha's eye twitched. "Hinata invited me over, she wants me to meet some people," he added after a while. The brunette noticed that the author was heavily blushing. "Sorry for not mentioning it earlier but I've just found out about this."

"I can't cancel the reservation now," the editor replied dryly. He probably could, the hotel owners were friends of his family.

"It's fine," the blonde said.

"I'll have to rent another car," Sasuke muttered. It also wasn't a problem.

"Yeah, sorry."

"Do you even need me there?" he finally inquired, feeling irritated. The blue eyes finally locked with his.

"Of course I do," the blonde answered. "But you'll have one day off, I thought you'll be happy." Uchiha's blood boiled.

"We have to leave now," the editor muttered, and left the apartment, leaving the dumbfounded Naruto still in it. He got into a car that was already standing there, and informed the driver that they will have to wait for Uzumaki. The woman nodded her head, and Sasuke wondered whether sitting next to her wouldn't be a good idea. She obviously wasn't interested in talking. On the other hand, the writer would probably get stupid ideas if he was to sit there. Unfortunately, the brunette wasn't able to make up his mind before Naruto came into the car, positioning himself next to him. Fortunately, he was apparently more interested in the book than in his trip companion.

Uchiha closed his eyes, hearing the driver start the engine. The car vibrated quietly. Maybe he'll be able to take a nap. Naruto asked her if she can drop him off by one of the Hyuga houses, and the woman agreed. The editor cursed under his breath. He should had been the one saying that.

"Sasuke?" the blonde said softly half an hour later, and the editor opened his eyes, looking at the blonde out of the corner of his eye. "I think we should do something together after we come back," he proposed, and the brunette's heart started beating faster.

"Like what?" he inquired, pretending that he doesn't care.

"I don't know but considering that you're bound to fall asleep eventually, we might just watch a movie and drink," the man joked. Uchiha had to admit that he probably would fall asleep. It was probably connected to the fact that he was overworking himself.

"Why not," he agreed, and smiled to himself. "Naruto?" he whispered after a longer pause. For some strange reason he felt panicked.

"What is it?" the blonde asked, still buried in the book.

"I didn't mean what I said back then," he murmured. "About you seeming available," he clarified. His hands were squeezing his knees, trying to not shake.

"It doesn't matter now," Uzumaki replied lightly.

"...right," Sasuke agreed, and blinked his eyes, keeping them from getting teary.

"Seriously, don't beat yourself up about this. It was just a stupid crush. We're both adults, we can still be friends, right?"

The brunette stared at the grinning man, hoping that he will be able to force a smile on his face. Eventually he formed a frown that could pass for a simper.

"Sure," he agreed, and closed his eyes again. He tried to stop his racing heart but to no avail.

* * *

><p>The driver dropped Naruto by Hyuga estate (where another car was awaiting him), and drove Sasuke to the hotel. The brunette thanked her, and told her that he'll call her if she'll be needed. With that, he marched into the lobby, feeling broken. There wasn't anything he could busy himself with. Uchiha went into his room, deciding that he'll get drunk to numb himself enough to actually fall asleep, and, maybe, at least catch up with sleep.<p>

He opened the mini fridge, wondering who decided that alcohol should come in such small servings. The editor sighed with irritation, and took out a couple of bottles, opening one of them, and taking a generous sip of whisky. The drink pleasantly burnt his throat, and promised oblivion. He threw the bottles on the bed, and located himself there, launching the TV. He needed distraction.

Two hours and four bottles later, Sasuke could feel his mind slowing down. The alcohol didn't help him with feeling like shit but made it more bearable. His phone buzzed, and Uchiha cursed with annoyance, seeing that it was Naruto who was calling. The man cleared his throat, and tried to force himself into sounding sober.

"What is it?" he inquired. The only thing betraying him was the pace he was speaking with. The idiot probably won't notice it.

"Sasuke, I need you here," the blonde blurted out in a panicked voice. The editor felt even more panicked.

"Now?" he asked, hoping that the answer will be negative.

"Yeah, apparently they're hosting a party and there'll be a shitload of important people. And I don't know _any_ of them so I'll make a fool out of myself," he whispered. _Was he hiding?_

"So…"

"Just come here. I know I told you you're free tonight but if you won't save my ass today there'll be no tomorrow," he hyperbolized, and the brunette chuckled unwillingly. _I'm drunk as fuck. I'll be a liability. _"Don't laugh," the writer pleaded. "I'll make it up to you. Somehow. Please."

"...fine," Sasuke agreed. "I'll be there in an hour," he promised and disconnected. The editor called the driver, asking her to pick him up in thirty minutes, and started to wonder how exactly will he make himself appear… not drunk. He didn't even dream of looking sober. The man entered the bathroom, forcing himself to vomit so he could at least minimize the damages. His body protested against it and decided to make his throat hurt as fuck as a punishment. Apparently the alcohol had to stay inside. Then he took a shower, hoping that he won't smell like a liquor store, and, to ensure this, he poured half a gallon of perfumes on himself, deciding that even if it was a goddamn _faux pas_,it was still better than the smell of half-digested vodka. Sasuke dried his hair, and made himself look representable. _I'll be a fucking disgrace today._ Uchiha laughed bitterly at his reflection, which didn't offer him any reassurement.

When he arrived to the Hyuga estate, he wasn't walking like a drunk, which was a big improvement. His eyes were still shifty, and if anyone would to pay extra attention to him, they would correctly guess that he was inebriated. Naruto greeted him outside of the house, hugging him with gratitude. Then his embrace loosened up, and the writer pulled himself away from the brunette.

"You were drinking," he said with disbelief.

"It _was_ my day off," Uchiha reminded the other man. He tried really hard to sound sober. "Besides, no-one will pay any attention to me-I'll just stand by your side and tell you who are you speaking with."

"Fuckitty fuck fuck," the blonde whispered in panic. "What if they'll find out?"

"Naruto, everything will be fine," he replied, and grabbed Uzumaki's arm for additional support.

"You're staggering," the author realized in horror.

"Let's just not move too much," Sasuke answered and smiled at the absurdity of the situation. _My father would be so proud._

"Yeah, let's not," the man agreed. "I hope that everyone else will get drunk as well. I know that I need to now."

"They're probably not as important as you make them out to be," the brunette tried to console the other male. Naruto tucked his arm under his own, and lead him into the house.

"You've used too much cologne," he complained. Uchiha looked around the room. _Fuck, they are important._ It was crowded with artists, diplomats, and CEOs. It was hard to believe that all of them had nothing better to do than to appear at some fundraise.

"Believe me that I've used _enough_," he stated under his breath. A man started approaching them, and Sasuke quickly informed Naruto that he was a literary critic, who scorched the blonde's work. The writer gulped loudly, and somehow managed to lead a polite conversation. Then an actress came by, and, luckily, Uzumaki saw one of her latest movies so he was able to praise her skills. "See? They don't suspect anything."

"Yeah. They're probably just getting drunk from the fumes you're emitting," the author agreed sarcastically. "I'm afraid that you'll doze off the moment we sit down," he whined.

"Fuck you," Sasuke growled quietly, keeping a smile on his face. "That's Tenten, her family exports firearms abroad," he introduced the woman, who was now talking with Hinata but kept looking into their way every ten seconds.

"What should I talk with _her_ about?" Naruto mumbled uncertainly.

"I don't know, tell her that the food is good," the brunette suggested quietly as she moved towards them. The writer pulled him closer, and he almost stumbled. Uzumaki's arm was ridiculously warm, and the editor had to repeatedly remind himself that they were standing this close to each other only because otherwise he probably wouldn't be able to stand straight. Tenten beamed at the blonde, and confessed to him that she was his _biggest_ fan. The Hyuuga girl was watching the two men closely, and Uchiha pushed his chin upwards, as if he was challenging her to a duel. Or greeting her. She could choose.

After another two hours of smalltalks, Uzumaki lead Sasuke out of the house, and made him sit on a bench.

"I don't know _how_ you managed to do that," the blonde confessed. The sleeve of his suit was all crumpled. Hinata walked out of the house, approaching them slowly. The editor looked at her blankly.

"Naruto, you should come back inside," she insisted. "Neji wants to introduce you to an actor he wants to cast as the lead," the woman explained. "And I'm free now, so Sasuke can go home. He looks tired," she whispered. Uchiha wanted to object.

"Yeah," the writer agreed before the brunette could say anything. "Sasuke, I'll call you a taxi, all right?"

"...we have rented drivers," the editor reminded him pointlessly. He was being sent away. The man turned his stare away from the two lovebirds, fixing it on a faraway green light.

"...um, all right, I'll call mine then," Naruto murmured. "He'll pick you up from here," he added after he made the call.

"Sure," Uchiha agreed. The green light flickered. He was patted on the shoulder, and left alone. Sasuke chuckled bitterly. He should had left the idiot alone with all of these stuck ups.

"You look like a little bitch," a familiar voice said.

"I didn't know you were here, Suigetsu," the brunette muttered as the other man sat next to him.

"Orochimaru sent me here in his place," the man complained. Orochimaru was the man Suigetsu was working for. "But _why_ do you look like a little bitch?"

"I don't," the editor disagreed.

"You look as if someone dumped you," he replied happily. "Want a revenge fuck?"

"He wouldn't care," Sasuke answered.

"Then I can offer you a pity fuck," the man proposed, and ruffled Uchiha's hair.

"I'll pass," he said, and smiled faintly at Suigetsu. They used to be fuck buddies when they were still in an all-male boarding school. "Although I thought you were straight," he commented.

"You're still my only guy," the teal-haired man confessed. "But you moan like a girl so I _could_ make an exception for you," he teased. Uchiha chuckled unwillingly.

"Thanks but no," he said.

"What are you even doing here? Your father sent you here?"

"No, I'm Uzumaki's agent," Sasuke whispered, deciding that using the idiot's surname will be less suspicious.

"Wow, that's a long way down," Suigetsu replied in disbelief, and the editor wondered why everyone kept saying this.

"But I'm leaving in a moment," the brunette added. "And then I'll get wasted in my hotel room," he uttered. "Since _this_ was my original plan for the evening."

"It actually sounds better than staying here all night," Suigetsu agreed. "May I tag along?" he questioned unexpectedly.

"...sure," Sasuke muttered after a pause. Drinking with high school friend was much less pitiful than drinking alone.

* * *

><p>"My fucking ass," Sasuke complained after he was forced to wake up by being kicked in his buttocks.<p>

"Yup, it's still the best," Suigetsu chirped happily, and slapped it roughly through the covers. "But there's this guy who doesn't know how to knock," he said, and pointed towards the doors with one of his legs, which had been up until now bent over Uchiha's lower half. The brunette turned his head to see blushing Naruto. He looked around the room, trying to find any reason behind it. He was only able to discover that his breakfast was being eaten by Suigetsu. _And _he was using his laptop. _How did he know the password?_ The editor shot him an angry stare, and returned to the blonde.

"What is it?" he inquired, stretching his legs. He and Suigetsu had definitely drunk too much.

"...we have to leave in thirty minutes," Uzumaki mumbled incoherently, looking everywhere but at the bed. The brunette raised his eyebrow. _Does he think we had sex?_

"I'll be ready," he answered, wondering whether he should inform the blonde that his ass was still untouched. Or, to be more precise, it wasn't touched for the last year. Then he resigned, deciding that Naruto probably didn't care anyways.

"Yeah," the author agreed and practically ran through the doors.

"Well, that was weird," Suigetsu pointed out laughing, showing all of his unusually sharp teeth.

"It was," Sasuke admitted, and got up. He had a long day in front of him.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: "I'll update my other story first" my ass. But now I'm really going to do it. It's the right thing to do. How did you like this chapter?  
><strong>


	6. Chapter 6

"Oh no, she's standing again," Sasuke mocked Naruto, who was tightly gripping a pillow, and making whimpering noises.

"Yeah, because she's _possessed_," the blonde complained, looking through his fingers at the TV screen. "I think I saw something moving in the background."

"Oh no, something might have moved in the background," Uchiha snorted, and lay on his side of the couch, his legs still lying on the ground. He raised his eyebrow, when he felt them being lifted, and placed on the writer's lap. Then he smirked when he felt that Uzumaki jumped with fear at something happening in the movie.

"Did you hear that?!"

"Yeah, the noises of someone climbing up the stairs are really fucking scary," Sasuke teased the other man, who threw the pillow at him. It bounced off his face and fell on the floor, making the popcorn bowl topple and spill its contents. The brunette eyed the damages, and shrugged his shoulders.

"You're making me think that Hinata was right about you," Naruto complained, resting his arm on Uchiha's shin.

"When?" the editor inquired in a bored tone. Somehow he hoped that he won't have to talk about her ever again. It was probably impossible, but…

"When she told me that I should find someone… wait, she used nice words… someone more devoted to take your place," the blonde laughed. Sasuke stared at him questioningly. "You know, after I told her that you were hammered throughout the evening," Uzumaki chuckled. Then he squeezed the brunette's calf. Apparently the boring movie once again decided to be scary.

"And what did you tell her?" the man questioned. Somehow the topic of their last trip became a taboo. And Naruto chose to pretend that Suigetsu didn't exist.

"I said that I'll think about it. I'm a goddamn diplomat," he ensured the other male. "Unlike some other people," he said under his breath, and Sasuke swung his leg, trying to kick him. "See? This is what I'm talking about."

"And who exactly will take my place and suffer through your nonsense?" the brunette asked. He made himself sound uninterested.

"No-one, of course. I've said I'm a diplomat," the blonde explained patiently. Then he jumped again, and somehow managed to squeeze himself between Uchiha and the back of the couch. Half of Sasuke's body was hanging over the floor.

"Are you sure you want to watch this?" the editor asked, holding in a chuckle.

"I am," he answered in the brunette's back. "I can actually feel your spine," the man noticed.

"You're not watching it now, scaredy cat" Sasuke replied mockingly. "And there's not enough space for both of us to lay so you have to sit again."

"It's _my_ couch," the writer complained but raised himself over Uchiha's shoulder. "For fuck's sake, she's standing there _again_," he muttered and rested his head on the editor's side. Sasuke panicked. _You can't do this._ He changed his position to a sitting one, which resulted in the blond head falling on his lap. _You can't do this either._ He raised one of his legs, making his left knee touch his chin. Now Naruto wasn't touching him in an inappropriate way.

"Sorry," the author murmured, and went back to his half of the sofa.

"What for?" the man asked.

"I've made you feel uncomfortable," he said in a hushed voice. "Sometimes it's just hard to remember…" he stopped mid-sentence, and, apparently, decided that he didn't want to say more. "Let's resume watching the movie," he proposed shyly.

"...fine," Uchiha agreed.

The brunette stared at the TV screen blankly, stealing glances of terrified Naruto whenever he believed he won't be caught. His whole body ached. If he could go back in time, and read the damn text when he was supposed to, then perhaps he wouldn't feel so much pining whenever he had to be near the blonde. He wasn't sure what to do-he was well aware that an actual romance would be unacceptable; if anything went wrong, it would impact his work, and that wasn't something Uchiha wanted to deal with. On the other hand, the fact that Sasuke had to practically restrain himself from hugging the idiot wasn't an ideal situation neither. He was fucked either way.

"Sasuke?" Uzumaki whispered flatly.

"What is it?"

"Who was that guy? The one you slept with?" he inquired with his eyes fixed on the screen. Strangely enough, he didn't react in any way to the havoc that was ensuing there-judging from the screams. "I wouldn't make you go to that party if I knew you had a date."

"I met him there," the man answered. The blonde exhaled loudly. "It wasn't a date."

"When? We were together all the time, and I didn't see him," he muttered.

"When you left me on the bench," Sasuke explained. The writer finally looked at him, his mouth slightly open.

"So I leave you alone for like ten minutes, and that's all the time you need to make someone follow you into your goddamn hotel room? I'm fucking impressed," Uzumaki hissed. He looked hurt but _why_ would he feel like this?

"We used to share a room earlier, so… no, I'm not a ten-minutes-guy," the editor replied calmly. He wasn't certain what was Naruto getting at. "Why do you ask?"

"It was a surprise to see him there. I want to know if I'll see him or someone else again," he uttered almost inaudibly.

"When you came there, I should have had three more hours to meet you. And you didn't call or text me so I couldn't have known that I was disrupting your schedule," Uchiha answered uncertainly.

"...not everything is about work, nitwit," the male whined, and hit himself in his forehead loudly. "You know what? Forget about it, it's not important," he added after a while and sighed heavily. "If you want to get fucked by everyone, then so be it."

"Where did you get that idea from?!" Sasuke yelled at him. His blood boiled, and he could feel that his cheeks were burning. "First of all, it was _never_ your business, and second-you're not allowed to call me a slut only because you've found _one_ guy in my bed. A guy that didn't even fuck me then," he shouted.

"_Then_," Uzumaki repeated slowly, as if only this one word mattered. "I'd never call anyone a slut," he added after an uncomfortably long pause. "And I know that it's not my business, and that I have no right to be upset. But I am. And I'm sorry for that," he whispered in a flat voice. The brunette gazed at him in disbelief. The movie couple was arguing over something.

"What do you mean?" the editor inquired, his voice sharp and precise.

"Itachi…" Naruto started but Sasuke interrupted him.

"Stop with the Itachi crap," he growled. The blue eyes were still fixed on the TV screen. The pupils didn't move, didn't follow the characters roaming the house. "I get it now. You're upset that I'm not as great as my fucking brother made me out to be," he hissed angrily. The blonde didn't turn his head at him, but his cheek flinched as if he was hit there. "Well, sorry for disrupting your fantasies."

"...it's not it," the man protested weakly.

"And you know _nothing_ about me and Suigetsu but you're saying that he was just _fucking_ me."

"...I just assumed…" he blubbered unsurely but stopped himself. Naruto finally faced him, and Uchiha felt a pang of guilt. "I'm sorry, all right? I know that you've never intended me and you to be anything but friends. I'm just not comfortable with you… being with others. But that's my problem. Let's just forget about the whole thing," he pleaded.

"I have to go to the bathroom," Sasuke grunted and got up from the couch, stepping on popcorn, and crushing it with his feet. He slammed the doors behind him, and sat on the floor, his back resting against the tub.

He tried to regain the control over his breathing-right now his breaths were short and shallow, he felt as if he was suffocating. His eyes were stinging. The brunette got up, and removed the contact lenses. His vision became wonderfully blurry, he felt as if he was muffling the outside world. The man rubbed his fists against the eyelids, enjoying the colorful splashes floating in front of his tired eyes. _He doesn't mean it._ Naruto fell in love with Itachi's stupid projection of Sasuke, not with him. The editor splashed cold water in his face, hoping that it will wash away the confusion he felt. It didn't help. He sighed tiredly, and opened the doors, blindly trying to find his way in the dark corridor. Uchiha felt the wall with his hand until he could see the light beaming from the TV, and some fuzzy shapes which had to be the couch and Uzumaki. He approached the sofa carefully, maneuvering through the blonde's legs and the coffee table. Eventually, he was able to sit down.

"Is everything all right?" the writer asked him shyly and cleared his throat. "You're not feeling sick, right?"

"Everything's fine," the brunette replied absently, pretending that he can see more than just colorful splashes on the screen.

* * *

><p>Sasuke studied the tanned body that was lying before him, admiring the dark, flat stomach, and short blond hair that formed a thin line between a shallow belly button and nicely trimmed golden pubes that adorned the semi-erected cock, which was slightly darker than the rest of Naruto. The brunette inhaled deeply, getting drunk with the wonderful, fresh smell of sandal tree mixed with Uzumaki's own, somewhat earthy one. He reluctantly placed his hand on a brown protruding hip, knowing that he won't be able to touch it for the first time again. The blonde's skin was pleasantly warm and smooth, and the writer bit his lip when a milk-white finger traced one of his ribs. Uchiha lowered his head, gently kissing the spot just above Naruto's pubes, smiling softly when he felt the author's member touching his neck. He lifted the other male's legs, and placed them on his shoulders, enjoying their weight and hotness. They trembled with barely hidden excitement as Sasuke planted a kiss on of the insides of the thighs, finding a soft spot on the otherwise hard Uzumaki's body. The brunette caressed it, trying to memorize it with his hungry hands. There was a shallow indentation just below the ribcage, an amazing indentation. The peachy fuzz straightened up, responding to the touch.<p>

"Stop teasing me," Naruto pleaded in a hushed voice. His breathing became noticeably faster and heavier.

Uchiha smiled in the answer, and embraced one of the tanned legs with his arm. His other hand tightened around the base of the writer's cock, and the blonde made a satisfied noise. He started to slowly jerk him off, absorbing the wonderful little noises Uzumaki made-all of his gasps, grunts and moans. Sasuke gently placed his lips around the tip of Naruto's penis, tasting it with short licks, studying the surface of the glans with his curious tongue. Finally, he took the whole head into his mouth, letting it slide against his cheeks, and encircling it with tongue, feeling his saliva run down his fingers. The writer's thighs tensed, and Uchiha raised his hand, staring into the blue eyes, which begged him to not stop. He ignored the plea, and grabbed the blonde's balls with his saliva-drenched hand, squeezing them playfully.

"We're not finishing just now," he whispered, somehow managing to lube his finger using just one hand-the one that was formerly embracing Naruto's leg. He started to massage Uzumaki's anus, sliding just the tip of his finger inside. The muscle was tightening around it in short spasms, as if it didn't want to let the digit slide away again. The writer moaned loudly when Sasuke started to suck on his balls.

"You're pretty busy there," he noticed, trying to be funny. A tanned hand reached for the dick, which was shamelessly pointing upwards. Sasuke slapped the hand away, and his pale fingers once again embraced the throbbing member, stroking it slowly, in the same rhythm that he was finger-fucking the blonde.

"You're already leaking," Uchiha complained, his breath teasing the thin skin of Naruto's balls and his generously lubed anus. The precum was mixing with the brunette's saliva, and the editor felt that his own dick also demanded attention. He tried to push his urges into the back of his mind, and focus on pleasuring Uzumaki first but he could feel his penis twitch in his suddenly too tight boxers with every of his lover's heated pants. He pushed his digit deeper in a single thrust, and the writer protested loudly at the harsh treatment. The pained noises quickly changed into pleased ones when Sasuke finally felt the prostate. The blonde arched his back, barely able to withstand all the sensations.

Uchiha climbed on his lover, still fucking him with his finger. Naruto whimpered softly when his balls and penis were left alone but Sasuke shut his mouth with his own, hungrily swallowing every syllable Uzumaki was still able to produce. He added another finger, stretching the author, and took off his boxers, which awkwardly hung around his right ankle. He shook them off, humping the blonde's stomach, and feeling shivers going down his spine every single time their members touched. Their tongues were dancing wildly, as if fighting each other, and if Naruto didn't start gasping for air, the brunette would never stop the kiss.

"Fuck me," the blonde half-begged, half-commanded, spreading his legs apart. Sasuke ardently removed his fingers from the pucker hole, supplementing them with his throbbing dick. He pushed against the anus, which quickly engulfed almost half of his shaft. It felt perfectly hot and tight, the writer's insides were pulsating around Uchiha's penis, and he had to restrain himself from thrusting deeper. Naruto breathed heavily, and his precum was smearing all over the brunette's creamy stomach.

Sasuke gently kissed his lover's neck, brushing against its skin with his hot, erratic breath. He started to move slowly, carefully, watchful for any sign of protest. Uzumaki grunted loudly, and embraced the brunette tightly. One of the brown hands squeezed white ass cheek, and Uchiha moaned with approval when he felt nails digging into his skin. His thrusts became fuller and faster, and whenever he rubbed against the blonde's prostate, the man screamed incomprehensibly. Their bodies were hitting against each other, wet with sweat and arousal, and Sasuke could feel the tension building up in his testicles. He closed his eyes, trying to hold out a little longer,

"HOLY SHIT!" Naruto screamed, and the editor suddenly woke up, opening his eyes widely.

Around him was only darkness, and he could feel his heart beating fast, too fast. His dick was throbbing uncomfortably in his pants. _Fuck, that was close._ He tried to calm himself down but he heard something heavy falling down on the floor in the writer's bedroom. He jumped out from the couch throwing the blanket away. He didn't remember falling asleep. He heard the sound of shattering glass, and rushed towards the bedroom. He could barely see anything in the darkness, and when he opened the doors to Uzumaki's room, something attacked him. He covered his face with his arms, feeling something sharp cutting through his skin. He also heard… wings? The brunette made a couple of steps back, feeling a damn bird pulling his hair. He tried to scare it away but it didn't help. It felt as if the bird was trapped.

"Sasuke?" the blonde said, and Uchiha could hear the man approaching him. Then he felt that the bird stopped acting so wildly, as if someone was keeping it in place. The editor opened his eyes. It was already dawning, and just a couple of inches from him stood his personal nemezis, the blue-eyed idiot. He had both of his arms lifted, and, from what Sasuke saw, he was shirtless. His heart didn't want to stop racing. "It got caught in your hair," the male said and laughed as if something funny was happening.

"Take it away then," he ordered. The blonde tried to keep the bird in place with just one hand but it started to flap its wings again, and the man hissed with pain. Apparently he was also hurt by the damn bird's fangs.

"Let's go to the living room," Naruto proposed, and Uchiha followed his lead, hoping that he won't end up with half of his hair pulled out. The writer made Sasuke sit on the couch, and started to untangle the strands wrapped around the bird's leg. The brunette flinched in pain. "Don't move," the blonde whined. The bird got free again, and it scratched the editor's forehead. "Fuck it," Naruto decided, and Sasuke could feel something heavy landing on his lap. He opened one of his eyes in panic. _I still have a hard-on._

"Get off," he demanded but the idiot refused to move. He even got closer to him, and now Uchiha could touch the tanned chest with his lips. _He knows, he knows for sure._ Naruto was sitting on him, apparently not moved at all by Sasuke's dick poking his ass. Sasuke's dick, on the other hand, _was_ moved.

"I'm trying to get it done as quickly as possible," the man promised, and the editor noticed in horror that _something_ was poking his stomach. "And now it's awkward for both of us," Uzumaki sighed as if he was trying to relieve the tension. _He fucking knows._

"Just cut it out," he pleaded, not certain how much longer will he be able to endure the writer dry humping him. He was on the verge of climax when he woke up, and _this_ didn't make it easier.

"You'd have a bald spot on your head," Naruto answered happily, still fidgeting like a madman. His bare chest was brushing against Sasuke's face, and his loose pajama pants were too thin for his own good. The brunette clenched his fists, trying to focus on something different. There was a fucking bird in his hair. That was a good distraction.

"What kind of bird is it?" he inquired, feeling the author's ass rubbing against his dick. _Are you doing this on purpose?!_

"I don't know. It's black but too small for a raven," the male replied absently. His breath was heavier than a minute before.

"Stop moving so much," Uchiha whined, grabbing Naruto's hips, trying to make him stay in one place.

"Or what?" the man inquired. This time he intentionally made a couple of suggestive moves, riding Sasuke, who dig his nails into the author's stomach. "Are you going to…" he started mockingly, and stopped mid-sentence. His blue eyes widened in shock, closely observing Uchiha, who grunted quietly in shame, losing the battle with his body. He felt his member spasm as it spilled the semen in four short spurts. "Did you just…" Naruto whispered, his voice barely audible. The brunette tried not to pant but it was impossible. The writer's cock twitched slightly. "Don't worry about it," he said quickly. "And sorry, I didn't know you were this close," he added. He didn't move for the past minute at all. The bird screeched wildly, and the both of them returned to reality. Uzumaki's hands started to move again.

"...I'm not rescuing you ever again," Sasuke muttered angrily, and the blonde laughed nervously.

"You've lost against a _bird_," the man noticed, trying to sound normal.

"I'm not wearing contacts," he defended himself. His breath finally regained its usual pattern. He hoped that they won't have to talk about _that_. Even asking Naruto to never touch upon that topic was too embarrassing.

"Then I'm glad that it was just a bird," the author stated quietly. "Seriously, what were you planning to achieve?"

"I didn't exactly have time to think this through," Uchiha admitted and chuckled bitterly. His jeans were probably damp by now, considering the fact that the author was still sitting on him as if nothing unusual happened. The editor wanted to crawl under the coffee table and die there, possibly by spontaneous combustion so there wouldn't be any traces of him left in this world.

"You're free again," Uzumaki declared but didn't move. "You want to talk about.."

"_No_," Sasuke retorted decidedly.

"All right," the man agreed and got up, holding a screeching bird with his hands. He opened a window, and threw the damn animal outside. The brunette realized that Naruto still had a hard-on. "But just so you know…"

"No talking," Uchiha interrupted him. "Ever."

"Fine," the blonde uttered. He didn't seem ashamed at all, his dick swinging up and down with every step he took. "Nevermore," he added and burst out laughing.

"I fucking hate you," Sasuke decided. He also hated himself for smiling.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Awkward Sex Scene - check**

**Don't forget to review :)**

**Oh, and I realized that I should perhaps list the literary references that I used in this and previous chapters. They're not very obscure, and getting them isn't essential to enjoy the fic but... **

**chapter 1: none**

**chapter 2: Moliere's surname appears**

**chapter 3: Peter De Vries - "Write drunk, revise sober" (very often wrongly attributed to Hemingway)**

** J. R. R. Tolkien - the passage with Frodo (pretty obvious, I know)**

** W. Shakespeare - "Goodnight, sweet prince"**

**chapter 4: Charlotte P. Gilman - Yellow Wallpaper (this could've been confusing, I guess...)**

**chapter 5: W. Shakespeare - refuse thy name part ;)**

** F. S. Fitzgerald - The green light (the Great Gatsby)**

**chapter 6: E. A. Poe - Nevermore (Raven ;))**


	7. Chapter 7

Sasuke eyed Naruto's hand. It was now holding Hinata's, almost discreetly, under the table so the press wouldn't see it. But, then again, Uchiha saw it. The bronze fingers were intertwined with the woman's. Sometimes the blonde would even squeeze her hand reassuringly. Sasuke didn't even hear what questions were asked, who answered them, and what were the answers. He didn't care. His whole being was fixated on these two hands. Obviously, he wasn't just _staring_ at them all the time; he was stealing his glances when he was closing his eyes, and observed them studiously whenever his eyelids were lowered enough to almost hide his irises. Or this is how he imagined it to look like.

After the interview, Naruto let go off Hinata's hand, and the woman quickly put it on her lap. _Just finger yourself_. Sasuke sighed heavily and got up from his seat. The writer and the woman disappeared before he packed everything into his bag, and the only person still standing there, besides the journalists who were rushing towards the exit, was Neji.

"You have to tell him that he can't do something like this," the man growled, and Sasuke wondered whether he meant what he thought he meant.

"I don't understand," he stated calmly, and raised an eyebrow in polite curiosity.

"He and Hinata would be a complete scandal," Neji clarified in a hushed voice. His hushed voice wasn't the best, probably anyone who would be interested, would be able to hear exactly what he was saying.

"...a complete scandal," Uchiha repeated slowly. He wondered whether he and Naruto would also be a scandal. Probably not.

"A mesalliance," Hyuga whispered, and Sasuke couldn't believe that someone was still using the word. He was probably right, though. Hiashi was known for his conservative views and strictness. If the world was to know that Naruto and Hinata were having an affair, he would immediately stop financing the movie. And that wasn't good news.

"...right," he uttered. Sometimes he wondered whether the Hyugas weren't brainwashed. "You're being mean to Hinata," he added blankly, enjoying how Neji's usually pale face became completely red. "But I will tell him that he should do something about it," he promised and ran away before his interlocutor was able to collect his thoughts and hit him.

He found Naruto an hour later. Or, to be precise, he was found by him. Sasuke inhaled deeply, trying to look as uninterested as it was physically possible.

"You two need to be more discreet," he stated quietly, forcing himself to still stare at the computer screen. He was hitting random keys, pretending that he was writing something.

"...what?" Naruto asked stupidly, and lay on his agent's bed as if it was his. "Why are your pillows stuffed with feathers?"

"...because they're _mine_?" Uchiha suggested. "You and Hinata need to be more discreet with your love affair. Hiashi's going to get mad if he finds out," he added after a long pause, reminding himself that _that_ was the topic he should be discussing.

"But I come here all the time," the blonde whined, and threw the pillows on the floor as if it could help anything. "And it's not a love affair."

Sasuke's eye twitched uncontrollably. _What do you mean it isn't?_ He looked over his shoulder, his expression still as indifferent as he could make it. He hoped that his heart wasn't as loud as it seemed to be. Because if it was then the guests in neighboring rooms would hear it too.

"You were holding hands throughout the press interview," he pointed out, carefully weighing every word. "Neji saw you," he muttered, hoping that it would imply that he himself didn't notice anything.

"She was just really nervous," Uzumaki stated lightly, and sneezed. "Just change the pillows, what's the big deal?"

"I like them this way," he grunted. "And the sole fact that she was nervous doesn't explain why you were…"

"God, Sasuke, you came on me, and we are not dating. Like, seriously, find yourself a bigger problem," Naruto interrupted. His nose was already stuffy. Uchiha clenched his fists.

"You _promised_ me that you won't bring that up," he growled, and turned the chair to face the idiot.

"I'm _trying_ to but you keep being ridiculous," the blonde whined. "You pay too much attention to the details, it's like you're completely forgetting the big picture."

"If Hiashi finds out, he won't be funding the movie anymore. _This_ is the big picture."

"Hinata's doing that," Naruto pointed out. "But I don't want her to get in trouble so I will try talking to her," he complied, and sneezed again. His eyes were already teary, and Sasuke wondered what the hell was he even still doing here.

"...I'll change my pillows," he muttered, and turned away. He got startled when he felt the chair being turned again. _Please don't look at my screen. It's all gibberish._

"Thanks," Naruto said and grinned widely. His face was just a few inches away.

"...you've been smoking," Sasuke complained.

"It doesn't matter now, right?" the blonde pointed out, and stood up. He stared at the brunette for a while without saying a word, and, eventually, left the room.

* * *

><p>Sasuke grunted in discontent, feeling something heavy landing on his back. He opened his eyes, put on the glasses, and shot an angry stare at the unwanted guest.<p>

"I see you still didn't change your covers for something more idiot-friendly," Itachi muttered blankly, smiling at his brother.

"How did you get here?" Sasuke asked. "And there's no reason for me to change them," he admitted, realizing that Itachi will never answer his question.

"So you still didn't get laid," the older Uchiha snorted. "No wonder you're so moody," he murmured and put himself in a more comfortable position. More comfortable for _him_. He was hurting Sasuke with his pointy elbows. "I have some bad news," he added after a while and sighed heavily. His smile faded.

"What bad news?" Sasuke questioned, pretending to be tired. He was actually worried, there weren't many things that Itachi would consider _bad_ news. He was usually indifferent to everything.

"Father is going to retire by the end of this year," he explained. That meant there were only three months left until Itachi was to assume his position. And Sasuke, as a second son, had to make his move rather quickly. He wasn't particularly ready yet. He believed that he had at least two more years. Now his father's decision to make him Naruto's agent seemed much more calculated. He had nothing to say now, and his only writer was practically tied to the company. He could still contact his previous ones, though…

"Congratulations," he replied, and closed his eyes again. He'll have to quit soon. And start overtaking all the companies in which he was a majority shareholder. He still didn't have a detailed plan of what exactly he wanted to do after that. Fugaku had chosen a perfect moment. He distracted Sasuke with Naruto… Naruto… he will have to leave the writer alone now. With an unfinished book. And the movie crew didn't even start working yet. He really sucked as an agent.

"I know it's not much but I'll free Uzumaki after I'll… he'll be yours," Itachi whispered and cleared his throat in what seemed to be… embarrassment? It didn't suit him. But, then again, as expected, his brother already suspected what Sasuke wanted to do. "Maybe we'll merge in a few years," he added jokingly.

"I don't need him," Sasuke answered and rubbed his forehead. This was _bad_. "And I believe that staying with you will be better for him."

"Aren't you a little boy scout," Itachi chuckled and ruffled his brother's hair. "I don't really care about his well-being, though. And I've never doubted your ability to manage without him. He'll probably become a burden, actually. But, you know… I don't want to leave you alone," he stated calmly. He was right about one thing. Their father will get furious when he learns that Sasuke wants to quit and start his own company. "When I've stepped out as his editor, I did it because I believed that you could use some entertainment. He's a funny guy. You like funny guys, right? That last one with a name was funny."

"They _all_ had names," Sasuke pointed out, and buried his face in a pillow.

"Of course they did, naming your child is a legal obligation," Itachi noticed, and raised his eyebrow as if he heard something unbelievably stupid.

"Who named Naruto, then?" the younger brunette asked before he could stop himself. His cheeks started to burn him. "It's a silly name," he clarified.

"It is," Itachi agreed with him. "When he first introduced himself to me, I thought that it was some kind of a pseudonym or a joke. But I don't know who decided to punish him with that name. It suits him, though. You can ask him about that. He likes to talk about himself."

"...he doesn't talk about himself all that much," Sasuke murmured. "And his parents is the topic he forbid any interviewer to touch upon. So I guess that…"

"You're not some measly interviewer, little brother," Itachi pointed out. "And I guess that from now on we will be rivals so we won't be able to talk as freely as we do now. And you could use some friendly soul," he concluded.

"It's not like the idiot can take your place," the younger brunette said under his breath. The other male raised his eyebrows as if he didn't expect to hear anything even remotely nice today.

"I know he can't," Itachi admitted happily. "But there's a shitstorm coming your way, and I'd feel bad leaving you all alone in it," he stated.

"Does he double as an umbrella?" Sasuke inquired in a defeated voice, and tried to sit up. He found himself pinned into the bed, and sighed. Apparently Itachi was comfortable. _Selfish prick._

"I will miss you," he confessed unexpectedly. It wasn't like him. "Father will want to talk with you during the next few days. Don't let him bring you down. As for the other things… from now on we will be competitors, so don't lag behind," he warned the younger Uchiha and finally got up from the bed. He looked as if he didn't sleep at all. His suit was creased, his face was grey, and his hair didn't look as fresh as it usually did.

"You okay?" Sasuke asked, and sat on the bed.

"...yeah," he replied and looked away. "Sometimes I just wish it didn't have to come to this. But I guess there's no helping it," he murmured, and headed towards the exit. "You'll have to move, you know? This small apartment doesn't suit a CEO," he laughed bitterly.

"Yours is even smaller," Sasuke pointed out and followed his brother into the corridor. "And you apparently already have keys to this one, so…" he mused jokingly.

"Oh, I'm moving away," he interrupted. "I'm already packed. And I've already left my keys on your desk."

"...I see," the younger brunette muttered flatly. "So…"

"Yes, I won't be driving your drunk ass anymore," Itachi attempted to say it lightly but it sounded rather strained. "And I won't be able to come here in less than five minutes. You're on your own now."

* * *

><p>Sasuke sighed heavily. Inviting Suigetsu over probably wasn't the best idea. On one hand, he wanted to gather some intel on Orochimaru because he wanted to steal some of his beloved employees but, on the other hand, the man was quite annoying, and refused to say anything while sober. He apparently missed their wild nights.<p>

"So you're a big shot now, huh?" Suigetsu asked jokingly, and placed himself on Sasuke's lap. The brunette calmly let him nip his collarbone. Somehow, sex with him was like masturbation. He wondered for a while whether he was in mood for this but then the doorbell rang, and, before he could make up his mind, Suigetsu ran to the doors. He heard him open it.

"Where's the pizza?"

Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows, and decided to stand up, and see _who_ decided to visit him.

"Oh, you're that guy who doesn't know how to knock," Suigetsu realized happily. "What are you doing here?" he inquired, and blocked the way into Sasuke's apartment. The brunette shrugged his arms at Naruto, who looked at him questioningly.

"Itachi asked me to come here," he stated, closely watching the staggering man in front of him.

"So you're Itachi's little spy," he said merrily, and invited him into the apartment. Uchiha couldn't understand what exactly were his motives for doing that. The blonde didn't move.

"...spy?" Uzumaki questioned, not knowing what was the man getting at. _Are you a Trojan horse?_ This could be possible, it wouldn't be out of character for Itachi to resort to such means. Sasuke wondered what he should do now. He couldn't trust Naruto anymore, not until he clears this thing up, that much was sure. His drunk brain wasn't able to decide what to do next, though. Could he use it to his advantage? And, if Itachi really was spying on him, wouldn't sending Naruto away make his brother send someone more qualified? The brunette sighed. He shouldn't have been drinking.

"He's too stupid to be a spy," Sasuke stated, carefully pondering over the possibility. Itachi already knew that he was starting his own thing-he could've suspected it himself or he learned about it from Naruto. "Father is retiring by the end of the year," he explained to Naruto, who could've already known that. The writer seemed surprised but that could be acting.

"Then what happens with us?" he questioned, and Suigetsu snickered.

"You're not even offended when he calls you stupid," he laughed, and staggered towards Sasuke, who absentmindedly allowed him to drape himself over his shoulders. The blonde tilted his head.

"Itachi promised me that he will change your contract in such a way that you'll be able to leave his publishing house," Uchiha said, feeling slightly flustered when he saw a sparkle of joy in the blue eyes. "Why did he made you come here?" he inquired, deciding that it was a question he would ask even if he wasn't suspecting other man of espionage.

"He told me to keep you company," the blonde answered, and Suigetsu chuckled into Sasuke's neck. "But I see that you've already found some," he added after a moment.

"Weren't you supposed to see Hinata today?" the brunette questioned. Suigetsu jumped in joy when he saw a pizza delivery guy standing behind Naruto. The blonde finally went inside. He didn't look like himself.

"Itachi told me it was important," he whispered into Sasuke's ear. Uchiha pulled him into an empty room and closed the doors behind them, leaving Suigetsu alone with the pizza.

"Why would it be important?" he questioned, and sat on his bed. His head was dizzy. His high school friend barged into the room.

"Why am _I_ paying?" he complained. "I'm your guest, it should be your treat."

"I'll be unemployed in a couple of weeks," the brunette retorted, and gestured him to go outside. Suigetsu rolled his eyes, and obeyed the unvoiced command. "So, why would it be important?" he repeated the question. Uzumaki sat next to him, staring at him with worried eyes.

"I'm not his spy, you know," he stated calmly. _This is what you would've said if you were a spy._ "The last time I spoke with him was when we were visiting your parents," he added. "I mean, if I'm not including today's talk. He called me, and asked me to visit you. And he told me that it was important. See?" he said, and showed Sasuke his call history. The brunette noticed that there were a lot of Hinatas, all of them texts. Then he found the most recent one; the caller's id was "Devil Himself," and the call lasted less than one minute. Uchiha sighed tiredly, he didn't even want to question Naruto's choice of words. Then he remembered that a couple of weeks ago the blonde had thought that he "called the wrong Uchiha." It made perfect sense when he thought that the writer had used their names but now…

"What's my id?" he asked.

"I'm not showing you that, it's my personal phone," Naruto complained, and tried to snatch the cell from Sasuke's hands. Somehow, the drunk brunette gained ninja reflexes. After a short struggle, the writer was lying on his stomach, immobilized by Uchiha, who was sitting on his back, and going through his phone, trying to find himself. He cursed himself for not remembering his phone number.

"Pervert?" he questioned, and Uzumaki chuckled at that, shaking his head. "Dick?" he tried again.

"You're underestimating yourself," the blonde muttered, and got on all fours, making Sasuke fall on the bed.

"And you have weird friends," the editor responded, and smiled faintly. "What is it?"

"I'm not telling you this," Naruto protested, and raised to his feet, helping Uchiha stand up as well. His hand was pleasantly dry and warm. "I assume that Itachi was worried that you'll be feeling down," he stated, and opened the bedroom doors. "But since you've got your boyfriend here…"

"I'm not his boyfriend," Suigetsu shouted from the living room, his mouth audibly full. "My boyfriend would pay for my food," he added reproachfully. "Actually, _you_ can become my boyfriend if you give me my money back."

The blonde tilted his head, staring at Sasuke in a funny way. The corners of his lips curled upwards.

"He's pretty cheap," he whispered to Uchiha, who rolled his eyes at him.

"I'll pay for the damn pizza," the brunette yelled. The writer laughed at him. "But I hope that you've left something for us." He used the pronoun on purpose but made it sound casually.

Naruto smiled warmly, and took off his jacket. Somehow, the editor was willing to waste this day on doing nonsensible things and not caring about it being or not being Itachi's masterplan. He followed the blonde into the living room, where Suigetsu was sitting on a sofa, a piece of pizza hanging from his mouth, the remote in his hands. He eyed the box, noticing that the man was somehow able to already devour half of the food.

"You'd eat me out of money if you were my boyfriend," he muttered, and sat next to the man, making sure that there was still enough place for Naruto.

Suigetsu made them watch a movie about samurais. Sasuke had to admit that it seemed fairly enjoyable even though it wasn't especially historically accurate. He restrained himself from making any comments, seeing how the two men evidently liked the film. The brunette smiled to himself. The writer decided to get drunk as well, and they were drinking again. Soon enough, Uchiha found himself with his legs lying on Suigetsu, and his upper body resting on the blonde, who playfully caressed the back of his head. His eyelids were getting heavier with every moment passing, and after a while his eyes were already closed. He heard Suigetsu snoring about ten minutes later, and smirked. Apparently he wasn't the only one who was fast to fall asleep.

"You're Dulcinea," Naruto whispered into his ear.

"What?" Sasuke inquired sleepily, completely unable to understand what was the idiot getting at.

"In my phone," he clarified.

"Don Quixote never even met her," Uchiha pointed out. "She was just a fantasy."

"Call me a prophet, then," the writer chuckled bitterly. The brunette opened his eyes, and gazed at Naruto's jawline and neck. He couldn't see his face.

"I don't think he _wanted_ to meet her," he stated in a hushed voice. The blonde tilted his head, his cheeks were slightly flushed from alcohol.

"I think he _did_," Uzumaki disagreed, and cleared his throat. Sasuke raised himself on arms, pulling himself up, so their faces would be on the same level. He could feel the blonde's breath on his cheek. It smelled of rum and coke. The brunette closed the distance between their lips, attentively looking for any sign of protest. Naruto didn't pull or shove him away, he didn't even say anything. Sasuke shyly kissed the corner of his lips, still checking the ground. Uzumaki wasn't as slow, he almost immediately cupped the brunette's face with his big hands, quickly moving one of them on the back of Uchiha's head, and pulling him closer, making their chins almost clash with one another. Sasuke sighed with relief, and kissed him again, trying to place himself in a more comfortable position. He probably kicked Suigetsu in the process but the male didn't wake up.

"...is this you being drunk and horny _again_?" Naruto whispered into the brunette's mouth, and Sasuke hated him for it. It made him regain his composure, and forced him to calm his racing heart. _I've almost invited you to my bedroom._

"No," he protested weakly.

"Well, you _are_ drunk, and from what I can feel, I'd say that you're horny. Let's talk about this in the morning," the male proposed, rubbing Sasuke's arms in a friendly manner. "I could catch you a bird so you'd let out some steam," he offered, and was rightfully hit on the head for it.


	8. Chapter 8

Sasuke opened his stinging eyes, hating himself for sleeping in contact lenses. He blinked furiously, trying to somehow fix the sudden dryness. He was still lying on the sofa, and he could feel something heavy resting on his crotch. The said something grunted with discontent as he sat up. Suigetsu's head was now hanging from the couch, and the man growled at him incomprehensibly. Sasuke looked around the room – Naruto was nowhere to be seen. He smiled bitterly to himself. Apparently the morning wasn't destined to come for them. Sasuke got up, almost accidentally lurking into his bedroom - it was empty as well. He sighed, and went into the kitchen, taking out two cups. As he was waiting for the coffee to get made, he looked through his phone. His father asked him to see him at 3pm in his office. Sasuke frowned - sometimes he wondered whether Fugaku was physically able to not act as if he was always in work. There was also a text from Naruto. The writer informed him that he had to leave, and that he will call Uchiha when he'll be able to. Suigetsu entered the kitchen, and picked up one of the cups.

"Are you hungover?" he inquired in a tired tone. Judging from the blemishes under his eyes, _he_ was.

"No," Sasuke replied and smirked nastily. A few years ago, when he wasn't feeling too well, Suigetsu went out of his way just to unnerve him. Luckily for his friend, he wasn't in a mood for taking revenge now.

"Where's that guy?"

"He had to leave," the brunette answered the question as if it didn't matter.

"Weren't you supposed to talk now?" the man questioned, sipping the dark liquid. His face cringed when he realized that there wasn't any sugar in it. Sasuke glared at him, wondering if he could be honest with him. He decided that he probably could- but then he'd have to suffer through heartless mocking. "And who's Dulcinea?" Suigetsu asked, massaging the back of his head.

"Someone who doesn't exist," Sasuke replied truthfully. He bit the insides of his cheek, eying the empty couch. Aldonza always seemed like a much more sensible gal. "You will contact Karin and Juugo for me, right?" he reminded the other male, who observed him closely.

"Yeah, yeah…" he agreed, and opened Sasuke's fridge. The brunette chuckled, knowing all too well that it was practically empty. He didn't exactly have time to cook. "Feed me," Suigetsu complained, sinking into a couch. "And Sasuke, what's up with this guy? Are you two dating or what?"

"No, we're not," Uchiha muttered back, sitting next to him, and launching TV. He skipped through channels, finally finding the news station. He forced himself to _not_ roll his eyes when he saw Hinata Hyuuga at some opening ceremony. She was holding a bouquet of repulsive yellow flowers. The news anchor reported that the Hyuugas donated some equipment to a children's hospital. _Can't you be a monster? _He almost choked on his coffee when he noticed that Naruto was standing next to her, giving an interview.

"He's a busy guy, huh?" Suigetsu murmured, and rested his head on Uchiha's shoulder. "I thought he was a writer, though," he pondered.

"She probably told him what to say," Sasuke uttered, trying to not care. "She's… really _really_ shy," he clarified, heaving a heavy sigh. "But I have no idea what made her think that he would be a right choice. Neji's probably having a heart attack right now," he snorted unwillingly.

"Well, he's handsome and charismatic. And he seems like a nice guy. If _you_ were to take his place, everyone would just assume that there's something wrong with the medical equipment. I bet they would call a bomb squad just to be safe," he chuckled, and Sasuke smacked him in the back of his head, knowing that it will make him feel even worse.

"Do I really look like a guy who would blow up a children's hospital?" he whined, hating Hinata for the way she was looking at Naruto. As if he was some kind of demigod. Suigetsu eyed him studiously.

"Yup, right now you _do_ look like this," he answered and grinned. "So, how long do you plan on staying brokenhearted?" he questioned, giving his friend a reassuring smile.

"I don't have time for this," he murmured, once again accepting his loss.

* * *

><p>Fugaku greeted his son coldly, gesturing him to take a seat. Sasuke sat down, trying to calm his racing heart. He wasn't sure how much did his father know, and what did he want to discuss. The man was glaring at him in the usual way – as if he hated his guts. Sasuke still wasn't sure whether he was born with this face, or if he really despised everything he laid his eyes on.<p>

"Son," he started, shuffling some papers. "As you may already know, I'm retiring by the end of this year," Fugaku informed him in an official tone. "This means that our stock value will drop no matter what I'll try to do about this," he continued. "And _all_ I'm asking of you is that you don't do something that would harm our position furthermore."

Sasuke bit the insides of his cheek. Starting a new company definitely was one of the things that would harm their position. He wasn't sure whether he should play open cards and just tell him that he won't obey his last command, or, what would be much safer, pretend that he was just as hopeless as Fugaku thought him to be. He pondered over two possibilities, trying to act as if he was waiting for the other part of the sentence.

"I'm being serious," the man stated as if Sasuke expected him to be joking. "I'm well aware of what you were doing behind my back, and, while I have to admit that it was done skillfully, I will have you know that this cannot go on like this. I – and Itachi probably as well – would be grateful if you were to merge all of these companies with ours, but, since it may seem too harsh, I'd advise you to sell your shares and enjoy being a wealthy man. You wouldn't have to work for the rest of your life, I might be even persuaded to make Itachi pay you annually a sum that would convince you into not becoming this family's competition," he said slowly.

Sasuke cleared his throat. Itachi was right when he assumed that Fugaku will try to bring him down. Apparently, if he was to bring his plan into life, he wouldn't be even considered a part of _this family_. He smiled bitterly. The shitstorm was nearing, and his umbrella preferred the company of nice and beautiful women. Fugaku started to tap his fingers against the desktop, a sign that he was growing impatient.

"I'll think about this," Sasuke said evasively. He didn't expect the confrontation this soon. His father frowned at him, raising his eyebrows in disbelief.

"Until I hear your answer, you'll take a vacation," he stated. "Itachi will take care of Naruto, and I'll find him other agent. I'll inform the security guards that they are to accompany you whenever you're entering this building."

Sasuke shot his father a shocked stare. He regretted ever coming here. For a moment he even felt tempted to just accept the offer so he wouldn't have to deal with the penalties but he braced himself soon enough. He expected that it won't be all rainbows and glitter. He just had to survive the oncoming months. After a year or so his father's anger will dissolve, and maybe, just maybe, they'll be able to talk again.

* * *

><p>The screen of Sasuke's phone lit up. He poked the cell with his finger, not sure about what he should do. The brunette was sitting in his apartment, his head resting on the kitchen table. He wished he could call Itachi but his brother told him explicitly that he shouldn't. The phone stopped ringing. After half a minute it beeped, and Uchiha opened the text.<p>

'_Care to explain what had just happened?'_

Sasuke shrugged shoulders. He didn't know either. His mother sent him earlier an e-mail, in which she repeated the words 'remember that I'll love you no matter what' five hundred times. Uchiha was glad because of this but, at the same time, he had to accept the fact that his mother, who usually avoided new technologies – or any technologies at all – preferred to write to him instead of calling him. Or visiting him. Sasuke sighed in defeat. If he was to agree to his father's conditions, he would lead a pretty comfortable life. He wouldn't gain anything but he wouldn't lose anything either. Now he had to risk _everything_. If he would fail then his failure would be much bigger and much more shameful than if he had just given up. The man cursed under his nose, glaring daggers at the ringing phone.

"…what do you want?" he growled.

"We were supposed to talk this morning," Naruto reminded him. Sasuke rolled his eyes. It wasn't important anymore. And he wasn't a sharing kind of person.

"You were absent," he stated sharply. He was answered with silence. "Is that all?"

"…no," the blonde murmured. "I've just learned that you're… well… that we're not working together anymore…"

"Then you already know everything," Sasuke retorted, and hung up on him.

* * *

><p>Three hours later he was woken up from a nap by a loud banging on his doors. He mumbled some curses, and got up, rubbing his cheek. The banging didn't stop. Sasuke sighed with irritation, and greeted Itachi, who seemed more agitated than ever. The younger Uchiha didn't even know that his brother was able to feel such extreme emotions.<p>

"Do you think that I have time for _this_," he complained, and barged into the apartment, quickly closing the doors behind him. "And I had to ride a fucking _cab_," he whined. Itachi for some reason didn't like any kind of public transportation. "And I had to sneak in here like a goddamn thief. Seriously, Sasuke, get your shit together."

"…what do I owe this honor?" he inquired in a tired voice.

"Just tell father that you agree to whatever he wants and do your thing."

"He wasn't born yesterday," Sasuke pointed out, leaning against a wall. "He'd make me sign thousands of papers just to make sure that I don't have any way out."

"Whine to mother, she's already angry at him," Itachi hissed. "And even if he really makes you sign anything it will stop being applicable the moment I'll be in charge."

"…it doesn't work this way," he said slowly. Sometimes he was completely certain that his brother didn't understand the corporate world. "You'd have to gain the management's approval to do so," he stated. "It's better to just wait it out and _not_ sign anything."

Itachi raised an eyebrow in a mute question. _God, you're so unprepared. _He felt sorry for his brother – when he'll learn that he can't act as an absolute monarch, he will be just as shocked as when he learned that Santa wasn't real. Sasuke snorted. He felt even sorrier for his employees. Disillusioned Itachi wasn't something he'd want to deal with.

"I'll be the majority shareholder. The management can kiss my ass," he retorted. He was technically right.

"You'll ruin the company if you'll decide to help me out. And your stockholders will sue you," he smiled. Itachi heaved a tired sigh. "And I'll have to pay you for Naruto – probably much more than he's actually worth," Sasuke chuckled. "If I'll decide to do it, of course."

"…why wouldn't you?' his brother questioned. "Wasn't he here yesterday?"

"Oh, yes, he came. Thank you very much, that didn't interrupt _anything_," he muttered. He frowned, hearing the doorbell. _Talk of the devil._ Sasuke opened the doors, letting Uzumaki in. Itachi shot him a curious stare.

"So, you're my editor again," Naruto mumbled to Itachi, who cocked his eye at him.

"I don't want to," he protested. "Can't my brother do it, and I'll claim that it was me?"

Sasuke rubbed his temples. Sometimes remembering that Itachi was _brilliant_ was difficult. The blonde was eying him curiously, evidently waiting for an answer.

"I don't have anything else to busy myself with anyways," he stated sarcastically. "Besides starting a fucking company all by myself," he added.

"That's great, thanks," Itachi replied, ignoring the other part of his response, and got ready to leave. "Send me an e-mail with everything corrected when I'm supposed to get it," he commanded and disappeared. Sasuke let out a frustrated growl.

Naruto smiled at him sheepishly. He must had realized that he just fucked everything up. The blonde played with his hands, his shifty eyes looking everywhere but at Sasuke. Uchiha decided to ignore him for the rest of the day.

"My former agent returned," Naruto chatted. "She wants me to change the whole book back," he chuckled unconvincingly. Sasuke shot him a bored stare. The blonde took off his jacket, apparently uncomfortable with Uchiha watching his every move. "So, your father grounded you," he tried to change the subject. The brunette frowned at him, and he sighed in defeat. "I _really_ had to leave today," he explained himself. "Apparently the person that was supposed to appear together with Hinata at the ceremony got sick, and they needed a replacement. That's why she asked me to visit her yesterday," he said slowly.

"So you're an escort now," Sasuke mused. He cursed himself for speaking with the man. "The gossip websites already suspect that you two have an affair," he said, forcing himself to smile. "I bet Hiashi will be furious."

"Even if it was true – and it isn't – why would he be furious?" Naruto questioned. "Really, what's so wrong with me that I and Hinata can't be a thing?"

"Neji called it a mesalliance," Sasuke replied. The blonde looked at him in a weird way.

"…why would it be a mesalliance?" he asked, and the brunette furrowed his eyebrows. He didn't expect the question.

"…that's not important," he said, looking away. He wondered whether there was something wrong with him just because he understood _why_ very well.

"No, tell me," Uzumaki demanded, cornering Sasuke. He tried to escape with his eyes but running away was no longer possible.

"…Hyuugas are an old and respected family," he murmured. He hoped that he wouldn't need to say nothing more.

"Yes, that's great. What's more?" Sasuke considered lying. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to come up with anything. Naruto earned enough to be considered worthy. He was handsome. He was respected. There wasn't any scandal he was a part of.

"…and you're rootless," he mumbled almost incomprehensibly, deeply ashamed about ever voicing the word. Naruto's eyes widened in shock. "Hyuugas are pretty conservative," he added quickly, hoping that it will soften the blow. The blonde seemed hurt.

"I don't think that Hinata minds that," he said unexpectedly. Sasuke stared at him, noticing that all this time Uzumaki was grabbing his arm. Now the hand was removed, and he felt a pang of cold in the area that was touched up till then. "So, you and I are probably a _mesalliance_ as well," he chuckled. "Seeing how you're interested in me only when you're drunk," he whispered bitterly.

"…that's not it," Uchiha protested. "We were working together, that was all," he stated in a weak voice.

"…well, we're not working together _now_, are we?" the blonde muttered, pressing Sasuke onto a wall. The man gasped in shock, his head bouncing off of it. His wrists were raised and held tightly over his shoulders. He felt his upper lip being gently bitten. He cringed when he felt Naruto's tobacco breath. Uchiha winced wildly, and shoved the blonde away. "That's kind of sad, you know? I'm driving you crazy enough to make you come in your pants – and I didn't even have to do _anything_, and yet you can't do shit about it. Well, let me inform you that you won't ever have to lower yourself to my sorry level. Whatever we've had, it's over," the blonde told him in a throaty voice.

"You're misunderstanding this," Sasuke whined. "And throwing yourself at me _isn't_ the way to make me confess to you," he added, trying to calm his heart.

"…there isn't anything to confess," Naruto muttered. "I've told you how _I_ felt about you, and for the past month you didn't respond to it in any way," he pointed out. "Oh, sorry, you've said that I seemed _available_."

"I've already told you that I didn't think that," he shouted back at him. "And, for fuck's sake, Naruto, you're in love with Itachi's version of me, not _me._"

"It doesn't matter now, does it?" Naruto whispered. "Just like everything else," he concluded and a false smile appeared on his face.

"I've read your fucking text a week after you've sent it," Sasuke growled, rubbing his eyes.

"What text?" the blonde asked dumbfounded. Uchiha rolled eyes at him.

"Your big love confession – and, by the way, really, that's the way to do it – sending a fucking sms," he complained. "So when I've told you that you seemed available, I didn't know how you felt about me. I would never say it if I knew," he whined.

"Isn't it pretty to think so?" Naruto replied, smiling at him bitterly. "What, am I going to hear now that you never want to leave my side?" he snorted. Sasuke eyed him angrily.

"…Naruto, I still don't know how can you write so well and be so dense. I think that your name is ridiculous but it makes me smile. You're making me angry at least five times a day, and I still am glad when you show up here. Ever since I've learned that you're allergic to feathers, I want to either fill the whole world with them or make sure that none exist. I want to punch you because you make me hate Hinata for no particular reason. I hate doing your groceries but I would hate it even more if someone else was doing it. I keep milk and whipped cream in my home only because you may come here, and want to drink one of your stupid coffees. Fuck, I've never thought that I'd have sugar in here either. I'm fully aware of the fact you're always just barging into my hotel room and I'm never locking it. I've planned to still be your editor after I'll start my company. Hell, I even wanted to be at least partially your agent. If it wasn't for you, I'd had gotten laid _weeks_ ago. And I'm willing to pay for you enough to satisfy Itachi's management, and that's probably _a lot_," he uttered in one breath. Naruto's eyes were getting bigger and rounder with every word. "So _no_, I've never thought about us as a mesalliance. When Neji said that, I told him that he's being mean to Hinata. And if I wasn't fast enough, he would beat me up for this," Sasuke stated calmly.

"…Sasuke," the blonde whispered in disbelief.

"See, it's much better than a fucking text message," he grunted. "And I'm still angry at you for forcing yourself on me so get lost," Uchiha concluded, and shoved Naruto outside. The man grinned at him widely as Sasuke slammed the doors in his face. _What have I done?!_


	9. Chapter 9

"You can't just come here," Sasuke complained, trying to close the doors. Naruto gestured him to stop. He looked like a beaten up puppy.

"But yesterday you've said..." he protested, and the brunette felt a blush creeping on his cheeks and neck. Yesterday Sasuke said many things, and was ashamed of all of them. The writer decided to visit him at 10am, and, judging from the smell, wanted to eat breakfast with Uchiha. "I'm sorry about forcing myself on you," he stated. "That was awful."

"It was," Sasuke agreed, and, using the fact that Uzumaki got distracted by some background noise, he closed the doors, locking it with the key

"...I'll just leave the food here," the blonde murmured, and Sasuke felt guilty. He probably could and should be still angry at him but the truth was that he just realized that if his father was to find out that there was something more than just professional bond between them, then he would probably destroy both of them. And, after yesterday's talk about mésalliances, telling Naruto that they should keep everything a secret seemed like a terrible idea. Sasuke sighed heavily.

He didn't even know what inspired him to act as if he was a heroine of a goddamn chick flick. He should be thinking about his future, about securing his position without ruining Itachi in the process, about proving to himself that he was a brilliant strategist. Wondering how to avoid a love-struck idiot wasn't a part of the plan. He looked through the peephole, making sure that the coast was clear, opened the doors, and snatched up the bag with food. Sasuke smiled to himself, noticing that it was still warm. Somehow, being pampered by Naruto after all these months felt nice. Maybe this was a way to take his revenge.

Karin stared at him as if he was a complete idiot, and Sasuke rubbed his forehead.

"Are you hungry?" he inquired and sat in front of the woman, who was still not convinced that she was speaking with someone who deserved her respect. She shook her head.

"That's not very nice, Karin," Juugo pointed out, and opened the bag. Then he frowned – the sandwiches had meat in them. Sasuke looked at him apologetically, and hid the food in the fridge.

"Why do you even need me?" the woman asked flatly. "I've never had anything to do with the books business," she pointed out, and sipped on her coffee.

Sasuke inhaled deeply. He was well aware of the fact that he shouldn't change too much, at least in the beginning. The stock market didn't like changes. That's why he had decided to leave the smaller companies to do their thing for now. He would have to merge them eventually, though. The only question left was _when_.

"You're a great analyst," he stated firmly. "I'll need you to study the tendencies, trends, market…" he started enumerating.

"I don't know books market," she replied sharply. "Oto is a pharmaceutical company," she reminded him unnecessarily.

"…look, you're the only analyst I trust," Sasuke said, and the woman blushed. She tried to keep her face stern but to no avail. "And you're brilliant – I'm sure you'll be able to catch up with it in no time."

"…of course I could," she mumbled. "I just don't know whether I _want_ to."

"In six months time I'll pay you more than Orochimaru does now," he promised, and she reluctantly agreed. "And, Juugo, I need you as my HR person – nobody deals with people matters as good, as you do," he complimented the redhead, who beamed at him. Suigetsu had already agreed to be his assistant, and everything started to look good.

He had decided that apart from doing things that will let him _survive_ he would also enter the video games industry. He learned about some small companies falling out of business, and, from what he was able to learn during the limited amount of time he had had, their biggest issue was lack of money and poor marketing. That was something he _could_ fix. Sasuke massaged his temples. It would be busy three months – especially since he got manipulated into still being Naruto's editor.

He still had to figure out how to do that while avoiding the writer. And there was still the question of what would happen to the unfinished book - whether it will be published by him or his brother. Plus, the another problem was that the book differed from what Naruto had used to write. If he was to have it published by one of Sasuke's subsidiaries, then the audience might think that he had changed for the worse and that changing the publisher was a part of the problem. If he was to stay with Itachi, then probably the ransom Sasuke would have to pay for him would become significantly lower. The brunette sighed heavily. Actually, if the book was to become a complete flop, it would be in his best interest. Uzumaki's readers could get convinced again that he was the same author they adored. Probably. Ideally, the novel would have to be put on hold, and the next one would have to be much more conservative. Sasuke rubbed his temples. There were far too many conflicting interests.

* * *

><p>His father decided to ignore him for the next two weeks. Naruto, on the other hand, was growing impatient. He kept calling, texting and e-mailing him. For some reason, Sasuke was always well aware of what exactly was the idiot doing. He even sent him a souvenir from a comic-con he had attended. And a photo of him and Sakura, his formercurrent agent. The woman was smiling widely, and Sasuke wondered whether she wasn't also interested in the blonde. It seemed quite obvious that she was doing a better job as an agent than he had done. The brunette heaved a tired sigh. He kept telling Naruto that he couldn't see him but the man was evidently growing tired of being bullshitted.

Sasuke rubbed his temples, deciding that it - whatever _it_ was - couldn't go on like this. He dialed Naruto's number, and was answered almost immediately.

"Finally," the blonde muttered. "I was starting to think that you've decided you were too good for me after all," he complained.

"...Naruto, we need to discuss some things," Sasuke stated. "Can you come to my place?" he asked, knowing very well that the two of them couldn't be seen in public.

"Sure, I'll just tell Sakura..."

"Don't tell her that you're seeing _me_," Sasuke interrupted Naruto.

"...why?" the man questioned, evidently unhappy about the request.

"I'll explain everything when you'll get here," the brunette whined. "Just... trust me, all right?"

Naruto reluctantly agreed. Sasuke cursed under his nose, noticing that he had gotten a new e-mail from his father's company. He opened it, read it, and then had to refrain himself from destroying his laptop. He was fired. Some HR person he never heard of ordered him to take his belongings by the end of the week. Apparently his father got annoyed with him. Sasuke clenched his fists, and threw himself on the bed. He yelled into the pillow. The worst thing was that his father didn't even care enough to see to his firing in person, he had just ordered some random guy to do that. As if Sasuke was just a regular employee and not his son. The brunette cringed when he heard knocking. Now he had to also deal with unhappy Naruto. He opened the doors.

"Why are you already angry at me?" the blonde inquired stupidly, crying in surprise as Sasuke pulled him in. "What's..." he paused when the brunette embraced him tightly.

"Just... shut up for now," he pleaded. Naruto awkwardly patted his back. Sasuke breathed in his comforting smell, hoping that it will soothe his wracked nerves. When he straightened his back again, he saw the blonde watching him closely with a worried expression on his face. "My father just fired me," he mumbled quietly. "Neji will never let me live this down," he chuckled bitterly. By today's evening probably everyone interested will be well aware of that fact. Naruto smiled at him warmly.

"You were expecting that, right?" he asked in a hushed voice. Sasuke frowned at him, wondering whether he was inclined to reveal that he was fired in such a shameful way.

"Yeah, I was," he admitted, and left the refugee of tanned arms. "But that wasn't what I wanted to talk about," he muttered, and headed towards his living room, knowing that the writer will follow him. He sat down on a couch, and offered him a coffee. Fortunately, Naruto didn't want one. Sasuke was pretty certain that the milk he had in his fridge had already gotten bad. "First of all," he started uncertainly, "we can't be seen together when you're still working for my father," he stated.

"So _that _is why you've been avoiding me," Naruto mused, sounding relieved. He didn't seem too concerned about the fact that they would have to hide their relationship. Sasuke nodded his head, and the blonde grinned at him.

"Then... If that's settled... There's still the question of what will happen to your book," he continued. "Theoretically, it should be published by Uchiha Publishing since they're the ones that signed the contract with you," he explained. "That would mean that I won't be able to make the transfer possible until it's done," he added in a tired voice.

"Well, Itachi said that he will give me to you immediately after he takes over," Naruto replied.

"Itachi doesn't really understand how all of this works," Sasuke complained. His brother never wanted to be the heir and did everything he could to appear as the worst possible choice. Unfortunately for him, he was never able to hide the fact that he was brilliant enough to fill any position he would be given. "But if it really was to happen, then there's another problem – this book is too different when compared with your previous ones," he uttered. "This could be a complete failure and I'm not sure whether I can afford a complete failure right now," he confessed. Naruto furrowed his eyebrows.

"So... before, you _were_ willing to put my reputation on line," he muttered. "And _now_ your only concern is that it would make _you_ look bad," Naruto growled. "Sasuke, _you_ were the one who practically forced everything that is different and could make this book flop," he complained, glaring daggers at the brunette. Sasuke gulped almost inaudibly. Apparently Itachi forgot to mention that he _was_ pretty selfish. The blonde shook his head in disbelief. "I have a feeling that you're going to ruin me," he snorted angrily.

"...objectively speaking, this novel _is_ better than the previous ones," Sasuke blurted out. It didn't really matter, people didn't like changes. There was no telling of how the audience will react. Some people were already complaining that with the movie being made, their favorite writer would probably struggle with delivering them a quality material. Some were excited, some were arguing that the book was better – and, frankly, Sasuke had to agree with them – books were _always_ better, and he wondered why repeating that over and over again seemed sensible. "But it would be much safer if you were to forget about it..."

"Manuscripts don't burn," Naruto interrupted him. He was absurdly agitated.

"You're not writing this with an actual ink," Sasuke complained, and rubbed his eyelids with his fingertips. He hadn't been worried about _this_ part of the conversation. "And I'm just asking you to forget about it for _now_..."

"So it wouldn't hurt your position as the publisher," the blonde shouted back. "You are either taking me with it or not at all," he stated decidedly, and rose to his feet, ready to leave. Sasuke wondered whether informing him that there were _so_ many people he could sign Naruto's transfer with that Naruto himself wasn't even needed for that was a suicidal move. It probably was.

"Fine," he relented. Since everything was already fucked up, one more fuckup couldn't hurt much. The blonde beamed at him, evidently proud of his little victory. "But when everything will turn to ash, I'm holding you responsible," he added in a tired voice. Naruto sat next to him, putting his arm around other male's neck, visibly happy. Sasuke noticed that he didn't reek of tobacco, and smiled to himself.

"You could become my trophy husband," the blonde mused cheerfully. Uchiha shot him an angry stare, wondering _when_ exactly did he sent off a vibe of wanting to be anyone's trophy.

"You're forgetting that my brother is a sociopathic murderer," he whispered. Naruto jumped in his seat, and the brunette snickered at him. "And the devil himself," he laughed. "If anyone's going to be anyone's trophy, then it's you," he concluded, and freed himself from Uzumaki's embrace.

"Well, you _are_ technically unemployed right now," the blonde reminded him, smirking nastily.

"Naruto, I'm literally going to buy you only because I feel like doing that," Sasuke pointed out, and the writer frowned at him. The brunette wondered whether he wasn't too harsh with words. He cleared his throat, trying to come up with something nicer.

"I'm not some commodity," Naruto whined loudly. "First Hinata, and now you," he complained. "I'm not a prize dog you can drag everywhere for a show off," he mumbled in a strained voice. Sasuke wanted to apologize to him but the blonde kept on talking. "I've been talking with Hinata about that whole _the world can't think we are together_ bullshit, and she told me that she didn't care. I think she actually wants her father to get angry. She keeps asking me out," he referred. "And I might have told her that I have someone else," he blurted out in one breath. Sasuke's eyes widened in shock.

"...you didn't tell her that it was _me_, right?" he asked with a deadpan face.

"...well... you've said that the only reason why we couldn't be together was the fact that we were working together," he replied. Guilt was oozing from each and every word. "So I might have said..."

"Are you shitting me?!" the brunette yelled at the idiot. "You're sabotaging literally everything I've achieved during the past few years for the sake of... I don't even know _what_ exactly did you want to achieve with that," he growled, and got up, pacing around the room in nervous circles. "And I've _never_ said that we were together," he added angrily. Naruto shot him a hurt stare, visibly too afraid to say anything.

"...I thought..."

"Then stop thinking," Sasuke interrupted him. "Does anyone else know?"

"Probably not," Naruto replied in a weak voice. "And since there's nothing to know..."

"You're going to call her, and tell her that you've been mistaken," Sasuke commanded. The blonde meekly nodded his head. "And you're going to go out with her..."

"I'm _not_ doing that," Naruto protested. "Make up your goddamn mind – first you're acting as if we were a thing, then you're telling me that you've never said that we were together... and now you're asking me to take her out on a date, and you were losing your shit every time you saw me and her together," he whined. Sasuke rolled his eyes. "...and it's my birthday today," he whimpered. The brunette eyed him curiously. The anger was leaving him, and he was just standing there with his hands shoved into the pockets, wondering what to do. He had forgotten about it.

"...I'm sorry, I was really busy," he murmured. "I didn't buy you anything but..."

"A stupid _happy birthday_ would suffice," Naruto yelled at him. Sasuke let out a heavy sigh.

"Happy birthday," he said, kneeling in front of the blonde, who just eyed him angrily, evidently still offended.

"...it's a little bit too late for _that _now," he muttered. The brunette placed his head on the writer's lap. "I don't care what the internet says, blowjob isn't a good last minute gift idea," he added, and Sasuke snorted into his thigh.

"I wasn't trying to give you one," he assured the other man. "I would take you on an actual date but I can't really do it right now," Sasuke explained himself.

"So _now_ we are together again," Naruto exclaimed, and pouted his lips.

"...my father didn't even fire me personally," the brunette whispered unexpectedly. The writer stared at him silently, and eventually reached out with his hand, brushing his hair. "And if he will learn that you and I are together, he's going to force you into signing something that would make it impossible for me to snatch you out," he stated patiently.

"I won't sign it," Naruto declared boldly.

"In the worst case scenario, if you're going to be published by them – and that's still a possibility, no matter what Itachi claims – you're forbidden to write for any other publishing house while there's still a contract, and my father could convince the management to delay the publication of your book just so you'd have to stay with them longer. Besides, if anyone will learn that you're with me – and I'm going to be a competition soon – they might put a hefty fine on you for collaborating with the enemy," he explained. Naruto gazed at him in disbelief. "And if you were to _not_ sign anything, then you'd be just as fucked. They will know that you want to leave, and they will do anything to make certain that there's no way out. Of course, it matters only if you actually _want_ the transfer. If you don't want one, then we'll both have problems if they will decide that you're my spy or whatever," he added. "And you've forgotten about my birthday as well," he concluded, and smirked at the other man.

"...I've always thought you were a Winter child," Naruto murmured, completely disregarding everything else Sasuke had said. The brunette raised an eyebrow, wondering whether birthdays really were this important. Probably not. Or, at least, they shouldn't be.

"Summer," he corrected the man. Actually, being born in July wasn't as fun as some people would think. It basically meant that all of his acquaintances were absent. From what Sasuke remembered, he didn't celebrate his birthday for the last fifteen years. Naruto looked at him quizzically.

"Shouldn't you be... like... happier?" he inquired stupidly. Sasuke sighed heavily, trying to understand how did they move from an important conversation into a silly birthday discussion. "Why didn't you say anything?" he questioned hastily. "I wouldn't crash your birthday party, you know," he whined. "I'd just buy you a gift..."

"There wasn't any birthday party," Sasuke replied. The hands in his hair stopped moving, and it annoyed him. He was starting to get relaxed.

"What do you mean there _wasn't_?" the blonde asked in a tone that would be appropriate when accusing one of murdering a bunch of kittens. "I'm having one today and I'd gladly welcome you there," he whispered. Sasuke glared at him. All those e-mails and there wasn't even one mention of a birthday party. He would remember to buy a gift. "I mean, it's... I guess... a surprise party? Like, you know, I'm not supposed to know about it... but Sakura made a big fuss about me spending an entire day with her, and when I've told her that I had to see _someone_ she made me swear that I'll go check out that new restaurant with her..." he babbled.

"You _listened_ to me, when I was explaining you _why_ we can't be officially together, right?" he interrupted Naruto. The blonde exhaled loudly, and enumerated all the reasons. He wasn't lying when he had claimed to have a good memory. "I could pay you a visit after that party," he offered, and Uzumaki beamed at him. "Or you could come here since I don't even know when is it supposed to end," he added. "I could give you Itachi's keys," he said, and got almost suffocated when the blonde pressed his head to his stomach. Sasuke coughed, feeling Naruto's crotch on his neck, and tried to raise himself from the position. Unfortunately, the blonde seemed unnecessarily strong. The tanned hands pulled him higher, and the brunette wondered whether acting with such little dignity was something he could afford to do as a future CEO. Probably not.

"So we're like secret lovers now," Naruto mused, smiling like a madman.

"We aren't even _lovers_ right now," Sasuke pointed out, enjoying the flustered look on the writer's face. Apparently he was still unwilling to _go all the way_. He felt tempted to say something obnoxious just to fuck with him furthermore but somehow refrained himself from doing that.

"...this could be fixed," Naruto mumbled incoherently, looking away. The brunette smiled affectionately, fully aware of the fact that the blonde wouldn't notice it, and kissed the man in the corner of his lips.

"I've been waiting long enough," he admitted. "But I can wait some more," he added.

"It will come sooner than Godot," Naruto promised, and Sasuke chuckled bitterly. _I surely do hope so_.


	10. Chapter 10

"Your choice of weapon will never cease to amaze me," Naruto blabbered incoherently, trying to keep his gaze fixed on Sasuke, who was standing in the doorway to his living room, holding a bed lamp above his head. The brunette lowered his arms, and pouted at the other man.

"What are you doing here?" he questioned. It was already 3am. Naruto was supposed to see him last night but, eventually, he didn't.

"You've said to come here after the party was over," the blonde explained and hiccuped. From what Sasuke saw, he was completely wasted, and could barely stand. Somehow, the man was able to stagger towards him and plant a wet kiss on Sasuke's lips. It tasted like vodka and tobacco.

"Gross," he complained and wiped his face. "What's the point of coming here _like this_?" he questioned angrily. Naruto embraced him, and became almost completely limp, draping himself over Sasuke.

"Like... I don't know. Do you want me to leave?" he asked in a miserable whimper, and the brunette bit his lip in hesitation. Well, he definitely couldn't send him home like this. The man was barely able to stand up on his own, and, frankly, Sasuke was shocked that he had been able to reach his place.

"No," he replied after a while, patting the other male's back. He let out a heavy sigh, and started to wonder what exactly to do with the inebriated idiot. He brushed his hand through the blonde's hair, enjoying its softness, and hating its smell. "Go take a shower," he commanded and pushed him into the bathroom. Naruto obeyed, and sat on the edge of the bathtub. He was sitting properly for half a minute. Then he slumped into it with his clothes on, and legs dangling hopelessly on the other side of the tub. Sasuke eyed him, feeling a wave of irritation washing over him. "It's pointless," he decided, and pulled the idiot out of the bathroom. "You'll just sleep here," he muttered, and laid Naruto on the sofa. The man grunted something in reply. Sasuke covered him with a blanket, and returned to his bedroom. He had at least five more hours of sleeping ahead of him.

Or he used to have. Seconds before he was able to drift off into the dreamland, something landed heavily on his back, and snuggled against his side.

"What are you doing here?" he asked in a tired tone. The blonde murmured back that he was feeling lonely. Sasuke sighed, getting absurdly annoyed.

"Tell me a bed time story," Naruto pleaded.

"I'm not telling you one," he protested. The blonde whined at him, and Sasuke caught himself coming up with one. He forced himself to stop thinking about this, and closed his eyes again. Naruto sneezed into the nape of his neck, and the brunette shuddered with disgust when he felt cold little droplets hitting it. "At least cover your mouth," he muttered. "And go to sleep, I'm going to be busy tomorrow."

"...with what?" the blonde questioned as if Sasuke had invited him to a conversation. The brunette sighed heavily, and informed him that he was to have a meeting with the video game developers. The man whistled, as if he heard something amazing. Uchiha didn't think that it was something awe-inspiring. He was much prouder of the publishing houses his enterprise was eventually going to swallow up. "Normal people just buy _games_, you know," the blonde chuckled softly. His voice was already becoming nasal, and Sasuke wondered _why_ was he willing to suffer through all of this if he could had simply went to sleep somewhere else. "But you were always overly dramatic," he concluded.

"...Itachi sure liked to share his _wisdom_ with you," Sasuke replied in a tired tone. "Let me slee-"

"This one is actually mine," Naruto interrupted him. "...you don't look like a huge scary CEO, though. Like, this place is _so_ small," he laughed. "I'm going to boast about how you used to shop for my food the first chance I get," he murmured sleepily. The brunette smirked to himself, and pinched the tanned hand that was laying in front of his face.

"...I've baked you a cake," he confessed, instantly regretting ever saying that. Naruto laughed heartily; Sasuke could feel the other man's stomach shaking because of it.

"I want to see it," he requested, and the brunette denied him that pleasure. With the way the cake looked like, it would probably make Naruto die of laughter. It was the sorriest and ugliest piece of pastry Sasuke had ever laid his eyes on. "Come on, I bet it tastes great. You've probably remembered to put flour in it, and everything," he tried to say with a straight face but ended up snickering. Sasuke promised himself that he would throw the cake away first thing in the morning. Then buy one that wouldn't scream _I've never baked anything in my life, _and present it as his own creation. His mother had done that for as long as he could remember, and nobody ever caught her. The trick was to make the bought cake uglier with a spatula, some cream, and, sometimes, random fruit. "That's adorable," the man wheezed. Apparently, he had to calm himself down after that because he was silent for the next two minutes, trying to steady his breath. "Seriously, though, it's like the sweetest thing anyone had ever done for me," he stated firmly. "Sorry for being such a dick about it," he added, and embraced Sasuke tightly.

"...I'm not making you anymore food," the brunette muttered. His cooking skills were nonexistent. He knew enough to get by in life but that was pretty much _it_.

* * *

><p>Sasuke winced in pain when he was hit in the nape of his neck with an open hand. He squinted his eyes in anger and shock. His mind still didn't work properly. He swung his arm at the attacker, and stopped himself just seconds before actually hitting them. He recognized Naruto's... voice? If desperate wheezes and almost inaudible "I can't breath" could be considered <em>voice.<em> Sasuke felt as if someone poured a bucket of ice cold water over him. His sleepiness disappeared almost instantly, replaced with panic. He quickly switched the lamp that was standing on his bed stand on, put on his glasses, and frantically started looking for his phone.

"Shit, shit, shit," he mumbled incoherently, dialing 911 with shaky fingers. Naruto was lying in his bed, his face redder with every second passing, and Sasuke realized that CPR was probably the only thing that was medicine related that he knew anything about. He leaned over the blonde, mortified as heartless beeps were the only thing he could hear. He pressed his lips against Naruto's, trying to breathe in some air. His vision was getting foggy, and his heart skipped a beat when he heard a dispatcher's voice. He quickly introduced himself and gave his address, faintly remembering that one was supposed to do that. His voice was breaking - mouth to mouth resuscitation didn't help at all. "Naruto's suffocating," he cried in horror. "Send an ambulance." She told him that it was on its way, and Sasuke started to wonder how long did it take for someone to die of asphyxiation. He tried to breathe in some air again, and noticed in relief that this time the male's chest seemed to raise a little bit. He cursed himself for being so adamant about keeping his fucking covers. As if it fucking mattered. The brunette quickly lifted the unnaturally limp body, somehow carried it into his living room, and laid it on the floor, hoping that it wasn't already too late.

"Fucking come already," he yelled helplessly, feeling that his strengths were leaving him. He was quite positive that he would eventually run out of breath as well. He remembered that in some TV shows doctors used to cut a hole in patient's throat and stick some kind of pipe there. He wondered whether a kitchen knife and a fucking pen would do the trick. Naruto wasn't looking better - his blue eyes were still widened in terror, and he was receiving hardly enough air - but he also wasn't looking worse.

It lasted for at least ten minutes and Sasuke wasn't certain whether he could trust some random numbers that kept popping in his head but from what he knew, Naruto should had been dead five minutes ago, and he was still conscious. The brunette hoped that the unsourced statistics claiming that 75% of patients died even though they were given resuscitation was false. "Everything will be fine," he mumbled into the other male's gasping mouth in a croaky voice. "They're going to save you," he assured both the man and himself.

He felt a surge of fresh force when he heard distant sirens. His lips were perched and numb, lifeless and bloodless. His arms were trembling, his whole body was protesting against giving out anymore life, and Sasuke ignored it. He ran towards the doors the second he heard the doorbell, cursing his blonde for locking it. Fortunately, the key was still in lock. When he turned it, two men entered the apartment, almost shoving him away. Sasuke gestured them to go into the living room with him, and watched in terror as one of the man injected something into Naruto while the other one was cleaning up his mouth, probably planning to continue the CPR.

The brunette wanted to yell at him, scold him for wasting precious time but adrenaline had already left his body, and he found himself barely able to stand. He stared as the blonde was being put on a stretcher, trying to understand how exactly did all of that happen. It seemed unreal, absurd and grotesque. He staggered after the men – it appeared that they didn't plan to actually do the mouth-to-mouth, they simply inserted a huge ass tube into Naruto's throat. The tube was somehow connected to a... some sort of a bag which one of them was steadily pumping. They were saying something, and Sasuke couldn't hear them, the ringing in his ears was muffling the outer sounds. He looked at them uncertainly, and followed them as he was standing, wearing only his pajama, barefooted, without his phone or keys. They motioned him to stop.

"Are you two related?" the taller man asked, and Sasuke shook his head, wondering why would that matter. Naruto kept staring at him, looking _guilty_. The brunette tried to approach him but the shorter man, the one, who was pumping air into Naruto's lungs, told him that the best they could do was to allow him to ride next to the driver but he couldn't approach the blonde as his condition was still unstable. Then they ordered him to put on some shoes, and Sasuke obeyed although he hated them for stalling.

"What is wrong with him?" he inquired as he was running after them. He decided against moving out of the apartment complex the moment he realized that the stretcher was able to fit into the elevator. The men informed him that they weren't allowed to disclose it to him, and he refrained himself from yelling at them, afraid that they might change their mind about taking him with them.

When they arrived at the hospital, Sasuke practically jumped out of the ambulance. He noticed that Naruto looked infinitely better, and heaved a relieved sigh. He wasn't let into the room, so he sunk into the corridor chair. His mind was slowly getting clear, and he realized that he was stuck at the hospital with no money, no phone, and wearing nothing but pajama. If it wasn't for the EMTs, he would probably also go barefooted and without locking his goddamn house. He cursed under his nose. He wasn't even certain _what_ exactly did his presence there accomplish. After half an hour Naruto was left in his room alone, apparently sleeping, still wearing a breathing mask. Sasuke was sitting in front of it, lurking through the glass doors, and checking whether everything was fine. He felt tired and angry.

He got even angrier when he heard his brother's laugh. When he turned his head, he saw Itachi standing next to him, looking as if he came out of a goddamn fashion spread, holding a sport bag in his left arm.

"I see that you're trying to get rid of his gag reflex," he chuckled softly, and Sasuke wondered what kind of person one would have to be to even _think_ about something so inappropriate, yet alone voice it. "And you've did a tremendous job when it comes to shutting him up," Itachi complimented his younger brother.

"It's not funny," Sasuke protested. Itachi rubbed his shoulder in a reassuring manner, and sighed heavily.

"Sasuke, as far as I'm concerned, you were never here," he whispered. "But I'm the only one I can vouch for, and, from what I know, others are coming."

Sasuke shrugged his shoulders, wondering whether it still mattered.

"What are you even doing here?" he questioned.

"Apparently his _agent_ is the one he signed into the hospital card, and his lovely agent begged me to take her place because she was still wasted. Apparently we're the only ones who weren't invited to a party," he mused. "Can you believe that she actually had this fucking bag already _prepared_?" he added in disbelief. "Did you have something like this?" he inquired, and Sasuke shook his head. "Sasuke, I'm serious, in less than one hour this room and corridor will be crowded with people," he stated. "Hide while you still can."

* * *

><p>Sasuke got to his home by a cab he paid for with Itachi's money. He took out a roll with garbage bags and shoved everything he suspected to be stuffed with feathers into it. After he put it next to the dumpster outside, he realized that from now on he was left with two thin blankets. Itachi never fulfilled his promise of buying him something "more idiot-friendly," and Sasuke got irrationally mad. Then he ordered some online, and plopped on his couch. Naruto had never mentioned that something like this might happen.<p>

* * *

><p>He was woken up by a doorbell. He straightened his back and legs, hating himself for falling asleep while sitting. Every single one of his muscles and bones hurt. He blinked his eyes, and quickly checked the clock - it was almost 11am. He had a meeting scheduled for 2pm. Sasuke cursed the world, his life and everything in existence, and got up to open the doors.<p>

"You're a fucking idiot," he greeted Naruto. The blonde smiled at him sheepishly, and practically barged into the apartment. "What were you thinking?" he questioned angrily. "I'm not a bloody doctor, you could've died there, you know," he whined, and sunk in himself.

"It never happened before," Naruto explained himself. His voice was unnaturally quiet and raspy. He cleared his throat in embarrassment. Sasuke eyed him begrudgingly. "I didn't even _know_ that something like this might happen," he added. "Seriously, when I was laying next to you, I believed that I'll just wake up with a stuffy nose," the blonde complained throatily.

"...shouldn't you be still at the hospital?" Sasuke asked after a longer pause. Naruto closed the distance between them, and hugged him tightly. The brunette exhaled loudly, finally believing that the man was fine and alive. His body was as irrationally warm as always, and the familiar scent of sandal tree filled Sasuke's nostrils. He felt as if he was finally allowed to breathe properly again. "I've told that I was done with rescuing you," he whimpered. Naruto smiled at him knowingly.

"I'm definitely glad that you weren't serious back then," he replied. "And they practically kicked me out of the hospital. They've said that I was asking too many questions but, you know, I didn't want to waste such an opportunity," he chuckled, and Sasuke realized that he was smiling as well. "And now I also know how it feels when you actually can't breathe. I've tried to recreate it before but _this_ was much more authentic," he mused.

"You're a total moron," the brunette complained, and buried his face in the indentation of the other man's neck.

"And you've promised me a cake," Naruto replied casually, and grinned at the brunette. Sasuke gulped mentally. The monstrosity was still hidden in the fridge; he didn't have time to replace it with something less embarrassing. He sighed in defeat, and headed towards the kitchen. When he put it on the table, he noticed that the blonde was doing his best at _not_ laughing. "It looks... interesting," he mumbled, masking a snicker with cough. "Very... artistic," he added.

"...you don't have to eat it," Sasuke muttered, holding a kitchen knife in his left hand. "I've already embarrassed myself, so..."

"No, no, no, I _have_ to taste it," Naruto replied hastily, and sat down. The brunette sighed, and began slicing the cake. "It doesn't have to be _this_ big," the blonde blurted out when Sasuke was about to do the second cut. He eyed the idiot angrily, and handed him a slice much bigger than he had originally planned to. "...so, you're not eating, huh?"

"I _can't_," the brunette answered innocently, and sat in front the writer, watching him closely. "This whole cake is _just for you_," he chirped in a threatening manner. Naruto cut out a little bite with a dessert fork, and put it in his mouth. He tried to chew it but, halfway through, he resigned and swallowed it all, forcing a smile on his face. "How is it?" Sasuke asked politely, and the blonde showed him a thumb up.

"So, you've mentioned that you'll be busy today," Naruto suggested, evidently trying to find a way out.

"I can spare some time for my birthday boy," the brunette replied, and ruffled the male's hair with a scary smile on his face. "And, since you like my cooking _so much_ I might change my mind about not doing it again," he mused happily.

"You don't have to," Naruto assured him. "I totally respect your decision of punishing me for ever making fun of your, um, exquisite cuisine," he added, and started to cut the slice of cake into small pieces. "Like, we can just order food. Or I'll cook. After all, you'll have this huge ass corporation to manage," he smiled uncertainly.

"I'll find the time," Sasuke said in a sickeningly sweet voice. Naruto gulped in terror.

"That's really unnecessary," he whispered weakly. "...besides, I've just remembered that I'm allergic to chocolate," he spat out in one breath.

"_Allergic to chocolate_," the brunette repeated. "I'm sorry, I know that you really like it," he stated in a falsely apologetic tone. "But there's no helping it then, the cake has chocolate in it. It's a shame that you won't be able to eat it again," he added, and took the plate to throw away the evidences of his confectionary excesses. "_Real shame_," he mused. "Especially since _now_ it's rather clear that you can't just risk doing it. That would be _really_ irresponsible." Naruto looked like a child, whom someone took a candy from. Sasuke started to wonder what exactly was so wrong with the cake that the blonde preferred to resign from sweets just to save himself from eating it. Then it hit him. He didn't put sugar in it. The brunette smirked under his nose. Not eating chocolate was a suitable punishment for lying to him. "I'll make sure to inform Itachi about this, so he could pass the news to everyone interested," he said in a serious voice.

"I'll do it," the blonde protested.

"After today I'm not willing to risk that you'd, you know, _forget_ about it," he replied, pretending to be worried. "It could end catastrophically," he explained. "And don't worry, I know a lot of recipes that don't involve chocolate," he added, smiling menacingly.


	11. Chapter 11

Sasuke massaged his temples, trying to somehow hear out both Suigetsu and Karin, who kept interrupting and yelling over each other. Juugo was sitting to his right, smiling softly - only a twitching eyebrow indicated that he was getting pissed off. Sasuke sighed. While all of them were goddamn specialists in their respective fields, their teamwork wasn't the best.

"Not everything can be put down in numbers, you stupid cow," Suigetsu shouted. Karin glared at him from behind her glasses, her face tense. He shouldn't have called her that.

"You don't even understand what I've just said, you fucking moron," she growled, raising to her feet.

"Guys, stop," Juugo pleaded quietly. He was the biggest of them all. And the meekest one. And they knew it, so they ignored him.

"I understand very well but it's a terrible idea," Suigetsu retorted. Karin wanted Sasuke to focus on his video games company for the time being, and later, after he would prove himself as a respectful businessman, declare his ownership of all the publishing houses and merge all of the subsidiaries into a corporation. Suigetsu kept repeating "go big or go home." Itachi did tell Sasuke to not lag behind him but Itachi would be given a finished product. Sasuke had a fleet of sinking ships. "These companies are just going to suck money out, and it will take _years_ before he'll be able to be all like _ohhh, look at me, I'm so fucking successful. _And those publishing houses? They work pretty well even right now, there's literally nothing that needs to be changed."

"God, you idiot, that's why I'm saying that he should do things gradually. And those companies don't have to be in perfect shape when he'll announce that he's a fucking monopolist-"

"Those companies are in a terrible shape right now," he interrupted her. "Look, there are problems with employees-"

"What problems?" Sasuke inquired, and they both looked at Juugo, expecting him to explain.

"Nothing out of ordinary," he stated calmly, and spread a bunch of papers in front of him. "Some people don't want to move, so I'm looking for their replacements..."

"Not everyone can be replaced," Suigetsu huffed angrily. Sasuke glared at him. He preferred a peaceful discussion.

"...I'm going to talk with those irreplaceable," Juugo assured his colleague. "The biggest issue at hand is how to deal with the management. Those people were the ones, who let those companies fail, so they shouldn't be kept there. On the other hand, you can't have a completely new one..."

"What if I did both?" Sasuke questioned, and Karin rolled her eyes.

"...then they would fight a lot. The old ones would feel threatened, and the new ones would be lost because no-one would let them learn anything," he sighed. "And you need someone you could trust to manage things for you... So my proposal is to have a completely new one with some experienced employee as its head," he stated. "I've found some interesting candidates," he added and handed. Sasuke a pile of papers.

"See, everything's under control," Karin muttered at Suigetsu.

"Well, they all worked separately on different things-"

"And they can continue doing that," she whined. "It's even better if they publish several games at the same time," she said. "Each team will compete against the other, and the results will be better. And, in the future, they will work together on new projects. There's no problem with that." Sasuke smiled at her, and she blushed like a peony. "There will be a problem with your lover boy, though," she uttered. "I mean, you know that you can't take him to any important event, right? The public will be fine with you screwing around with him but if you start introducing him as your actual partner, then nobody's going to treat you seriously."

"Why?" Sasuke asked, heaving a heavy sigh. Naruto was busy for the last month since the film crew had started working. He was working on the already written script, and helping Neji with casting. From what Sasuke knew, he wasn't overusing his ridiculous rights. Unfortunately, he was on the other side of the country. Sasuke wasn't even able to fulfill the threat of cooking for him.

"Well, first of all, it's as if you were dating a model. He doesn't really belong to this world," she answered. "Also, he and Hinata are acting as if they had an affair going on, so he seems like a player," she mused. "People are going to make fun of you. Or they'll be angry that you've destroyed their princess's love life," she chuckled. Sasuke eyed her, slowly digesting everything she had said.

"So we're fine as long as I don't take him anywhere with me?"

"Pretty much," she replied. "There'll be rumors, of course, but they won't be harmful. You'll just have to find yourself an appropriate plus one."

"That's cruel," Suigetsu laughed merrily. Sasuke rubbed his forehead. Itachi was right when he had said that Naruto would be a burden. "You can always take me, your _personal _assistant," he added, and squeezed Sasuke's knee under the table. They were in Sasuke's apartment since it was the only place where they wouldn't be bothered. The new office building he had rented had rather thin walls.

"I'll think about it," he said absentmindedly. Naruto wouldn't like the news. Sasuke wasn't even sure whether he actually wanted to share them. At first he had believed that he was simply attracted to the blonde but he realized that he was genuinely missing him. "I'm going to do what Karin says," he declared. "It seems more reasonable. And I can always switch to what Suigetsu proposes."

* * *

><p>He was going through the CVs Juugo left him. He had a couple of positions to fill, and all the candidates seemed like reasonable choices. Majority of them were rather young, some were even younger than him. He pinched the bridge of his nose. Sasuke had no idea whom he should hire. He googled a name, and got disappointed when he wasn't able to access the person's personal facebook page. There was a link to their homepage, though. He downloaded a demo of some game, having no idea what he was trying to achieve. He probably should have let Juugo do it. His phone vibrated, and Sasuke read the text, feeling a blush creep over his cheeks.<p>

_'It was actually kind of hot when you just came,'_ Naruto wrote him.

Sasuke eyed the screen of his cell, wondering what he should reply with. His eyes widened in surprise when he got a second text.

_'It would be even hotter if you weren't wearing any pants.'_

Sasuke gulped quietly, noticing that the blood was moving faster in his veins.

_'This could be arranged,'_ he replied, feeling quite ridiculous.

The game finished installing, and he opened it. It was a mix of an arcade and rpg, and Sasuke had no idea what he was doing. Or whether it was actually good. He was never really interested in gaming but he remembered that Suigetsu was. Sasuke started to wonder whether asking his assistant to check every game the candidates made or partook in creating of was an absurd request. He hoped not.

_'That's perfect because I need to do some research,'_ Naruto wrote back, and Sasuke chuckled. The idiot probably got horny when writing one of too numerous sex scenes. The brunette's smile faded when he remembered what Karin had told him. The writer _was_ quite lost when it came to high end parties but, on the other hand, he was a diamond in the rough. And Sasuke was quite confident that he would be able to smoothen its edges. People generally liked Naruto, he was a rather fun person to be around. And people flocked to him. Uchiha just had to find a way to incorporate him into his world.

_'What exactly do you want to research?'_ he texted, deciding to humor the blonde.

He wrote an e-mail to Suigetsu, listing all the names of the candidates, ordering him to check out their creations, and to inform him whether he found any of those particularly good. Then he started to read about the current projects. Some of them seemed quite interesting, and some were lacking something Sasuke wasn't quite able to name. He decided that he would need some kind of consultant, someone, who would know what would the customers want. Sasuke wrote to Juugo, asking him to find such a person. Then he started to read reviews of the games that were already published by the companies, hoping that he would understand the whole issue better.

_'I was wondering... since Sasuke is the killer, I'm not sure how submissive he should be. After all, part of his reason to kill all those people is to regain control over his life - like, he's an avenger, and all that shit. But, then again, Menma does whatever he wants with him when it comes to sex, and... I don't know, isn't it out of character for him?'_

Sasuke rubbed his forehead and let out a tired sigh. He started to question whether Naruto would always get distracted by his novel. Probably yes.

_'Sasuke might enjoy not having to be in control every once in a while. And it would make him more human,'_ he texted back.

_'Would you enjoy not having to be in control every once in a while?'_

Sasuke bit the insides of his cheek, feeling hotter. His heart started to pound in his chest, and he had a rather obvious bulge in his pants. He rubbed his dick through the thin fabric, and sent a _'yes.'_

He jumped in his spot when he heard his phone ringing. He picked it up, wondering whether he should try to conceal the fact that his breathing had gotten much heavier.

"Where are you right now?" Naruto inquired in a low voice, and Sasuke cleared his throat.

"Home," he answered, barely able to voice the word without stuttering.

"Are you alone?" Naruto inquired, and Sasuke felt a shiver of excitement going down his spine. He was almost embarrassed over how aroused he was. On the other hand, he didn't get laid for the last year and a half. Sasuke bit his lip, glad that Naruto wasn't seeing him getting flustered.

"Yes," he mumbled quietly.

"Good. Then go to your bedroom and put me on speaker," the blonde ordered him, and Sasuke obeyed the request too ardently to still feel good about his dignity. "Now... Do you feel the fabric of your clothes on your skin? How it touches all of you, how it moves and caresses you whenever you move?" Naruto questioned in a deep voice, and Sasuke realized that he _did_ feel all of it. The sensation was quite overwhelming once he decided to pay attention to it. "Now undress, slowly, tell me what you're taking off."

"I'm unbuttoning my shirt," he whispered, knowing all too well that his face was flushed. The shirt fell off his body, and landed next to his bare feet. His dick was throbbing in anticipation, and his breathing got even heavier.

"I can hear that you're already enjoying yourself," the blonde noticed in a mocking tone. "Remember though that for the time being your body is mine. You're not allowed to touch yourself until I tell you so," he stated firmly, and Sasuke tried to hold in a hearty chuckle. Unfortunately, ha wasn't able to.

"Really?" he inquired, smirking knowingly. "What are you going to do if I disobey?"

"I'll hang up on you and you'll be left alone with your erection," Naruto retorted instantly. Sasuke frowned. Well, he didn't want _that_ to happen.

"Fine, I'm all yours," he relented, and lay down on his bed.

"I want you to brush your fingers against your sides, to touch your chest, to move your hand over the solar plexus, and onto your stomach - but just to the belly button, not lower. Then I want you to touch your hips - to really feel them - grip them, slide a finger over them, learn their shape by heart," Naruto whispered throatily, and Sasuke listened, doing everything the man had asked him to. He shut his eyes, and let out a soft moan; his dick ached for touch, and he started to move his hips but it didn't bring him any relief. "You're still wearing your pants, right?" Naruto asked, and Sasuke told him that he was. "Good. Touch the inner sides of your legs, starting from your knees - do it slowly, don't rush it. Spread your legs apart as you're doing it," he commanded, and the brunette gasped loudly when he was finally allowed to brush over his bulge. It was pulsating rhythmically, throbbing and flexing, wanting to be touched. His inner thighs were tingling in the aftertouch, his whole body felt overly sensitive. "Unbuckle your pants," Naruto demanded, and Sasuke did that hastily, resting his hands next to the zipper, hoping that he would be finally permitted to take them off. "Now shove your hand into the pants, touch your dick through the boxers, stroke it slowly, savor it," he said.

Sasuke stroked his erection. His pants were limiting his movement. Someone tried to call him, and he ignored them, panting heavily. It didn't relieve him, it was still too little, he was still being teased. The friction was almost painful, his dick was insanely hot, and he had a damp spot on his cotton boxers. He moaned loudly.

"Don't be so impatient," Naruto chided him softly. "Take off your pants and underwear," he commanded firmly. His breathing also got much heavier, his voice erratic and much deeper than usually. Sasuke wondered whether the blonde was jacking off as well. _God, I hope he is_. Sasuke's heart was pounding loudly in his chest, as if it was trying to escape from his ribcage. He undressed himself, and the clothes sliding over his body felt as a caress. "Done?" Naruto questioned throatily, and Sasuke informed him that he was in a weak voice. "Now embrace your cock with your fingers, squeeze it by its base, and move your hand, but not by much, maybe an inch," he croaked.

"God-Naruto-" Sasuke panted, feeling that he was losing his mind and senses, completely helpless and still painfully responsive. "Please, just come here, and fuck me already," he begged.

"...you know I can't," the blonde replied, also barely able to catch enough air. "...I'd pound you into the mattress, though," he said, his voice heavy with arousal. "I guess you'll have to fuck yourself now," he added mockingly. "Do you have any lube nearby?"

"...yeah," he answered, still stroking his dick.

"You know the drill, I assume," Naruto whispered. Sasuke grunted in response, lubricating his fingers generously, and shoving one of them up his ass, practically without any foreplay. He wanted to have it rough. He moaned in pain and pleasure, and his mind almost exploded when he heard Naruto's soft cry. "...is it already in?" he asked, and Sasuke gave him a positive answer. "I'd give anything just to see it," he said.

"I could give you a sneak peek," he murmured, feeling incredibly erotic. He let go off of his penis, and grabbed his phone, enabling video conversation. He almost lost himself when he saw Naruto's flushed face. Sasuke raised the cell and started filming his body, simultaneously putting another finger into his pucker hole.

"You're really beautiful, you know," Naruto whispered in admiration, and the brunette arched his back, wanting to give him a better view. "...and insanely hot," the blonde added warmly when Sasuke showed him how he was finger fucking himself. He was moaning and thrusting into himself, giving himself a prostate massage. Sasuke didn't remember when was the last time he got so lost while having sex.

"Show me your dick," he asked quietly, getting the phone closer to his face. His eyes were fixed on the screen, he was staring at Naruto's well defined stomach muscles, and the goddamn gold pubic hair he remembered so well from the first time he visited the writer's apartment. It was pure perfection. Then he saw Naruto's bronze dick. The man was stroking it slowly, suggestively, just for a show. It was glistening in the dim light, and Sasuke whimpered softly, observing that its perfectly rose glans was covered in precum. "I want to ride it," he confessed, and added another finger. "And I want you to cum inside of me," he said. "I want to have my thighs covered in your seed, and I want you to lick me clean afterwards," he stated, feeling his scrotum shrink, and muscle tense. "I'm about to-"

"Show me," Naruto begged, and Sasuke held the phone near his dick, which was hitting his stomach every time he thrusted into himself. He could hear the blonde jack off and moan, and Sasuke's vision got completely white. All of his muscles contracted at once, and his penis was spitting out thick creamy strands of semen. "Good god," Naruto rasped in a breaking voice. Sasuke's chest was moving rapidly, his body coming to senses after the climax. "...fuck, that was much more intense than I've anticipated," the blonde rasped.

"...yeah," Sasuke agreed in between the breaths, turned off the camera and the speaker mode, and got the phone close to his ear.

"And I've finally saw you naked," Naruto chuckled bitterly. Sasuke smiled to himself with affection. "This is _so_ going into the book," he added merrily, and the brunette's heart which was up to that point busy pumping ridiculous amounts of blood, stopped.

"...what? You're _not_ using me as some fucking reference point, right?" he growled.

"You've said yourself that an editor should inspire their writer," Naruto mused, evidently not realizing that Sasuke was already pissed off. "Of course, I'm going to make it much darker. Like, perhaps Sasuke would had just gotten back from murdering someone..."

"_Are you fucking serious?_" the brunette inquired in a low voice, getting absurdly mad. "Were you even yourself or were you just trying to get into the character?" he questioned. Naruto audibly hesitated, and Sasuke felt frustration overflowing him. Back in the days he probably wouldn't even care. Now he had realized that the blonde lived in some fucking fantasy land, and was constantly mixing fiction with reality, barely aware of the fact that the people around him were actual human beings. "This isn't a fucking novel, I'm a real person," he complained, feeling empty. The sperm was drying on his stomach, and Sasuke regretted ever becoming Naruto's editor.

"I _know_ you're a real person, I'm not stupid," the blonde protested.

"No, you don't. First you've fallen in love with Itachi's projection of me, and now you're treating me as if I was a character in your book. You may know a lot about me but you don't know me," Sasuke hissed. "There is no beast in the jungle-"

"I don't get it," the blonde cried. "Today it was me and you, and not Menma and the other guy, all right? I _was_ thinking about adding a phone sex scene, and I _was _thinking that it was actually difficult to do it without ever experiencing it, and the other ones I've written _were_ coming out ridiculous and awkward, and I _was_ hoping that perhaps you'd help me out with this but it was really just me and you, there wasn't anyone else."

"...I don't believe you," Sasuke muttered. "And you've just admitted that you were treating me as a goddamn reference point."

"I _always_ do that. I'm talking with people, they're telling me their life story, and I'm simultaneously empathizing with them _and_ trying to remember the juicier parts in case I'd ever need it. Hell, a month ago, when I was suffocating? Part of me was all like _no, I don't wanna die_ and the other one was trying to focus on the feeling just do I'd be able to describe it properly-"

"...this is what I'm talking about," Sasuke interrupted the other man. "You didn't even want to have sex before, and _now_, when you need to have a sex scene in your fucking novel, you're all too ready to do it. It makes me wonder why you didn't want to before. I don't know, were you checking how people act when they're sexually frustrated?"

"...no, that's more complicated," Naruto replied in a weak voice.

"Great, so it means that you _still_ don't want to have sex," Sasuke exclaimed, wishing he had hang up on the other man half an hour ago.

"...I guess so," the blonde admitted and let out a tired sigh. "I'm trying to warm up to the idea-"

"_Warm up_," Sasuke repeated in a cold tone. "Are you even attracted to men or is that another thing you wanted to check out?"

"I am," he whined weakly. "For fuck's sake, you just saw me. You _know_ that I am."

"Then what's your problem with me?" the brunette growled. "You were screwing Sakura so it's not like you don't have actual sex-"

"Just _stop_, all right?" Naruto pleaded in a defeated tone.

"Oh, I _am_ stopping. I'm done with you," Sasuke stated, and finished the conversation. His phone kept on ringing and vibrating, and Uchiha ignored it completely, feeling strangely defiled. He hated how Naruto got under his skin, how he made him obsess over him and want to actually be with him. The blonde made Sasuke lose his precious time and strengths in such a culminating moment, and the brunette wished he had never met him.


	12. Chapter 12

"So you've dumped him," Suigetsu chirped cheerfully, brushing Sasuke's hair with fingers. The brunette heaved a heavy sigh, and nodded his head. "Good for you," the man said. "So what about that transfer?"

"I don't even know. I still haven't decided on that one," Sasuke admitted. "On the one hand, it would be stupid to ignore such opportunity - especially since I haven't made any backup plan. God, I was an idiot. I was just _so_ certain that the only difficulties will be getting a decent deal. I didn't even think that he and I would end up splitting," he whined. "That's what I get for not thinking," Sasuke chuckled bitterly. "But, on the other hand," he continued, "it would be awkward as fuck."

"Well, you're still his editor. How is _that_ working out?"

"Shit, I've completely forgotten," Sasuke exclaimed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "He should have sent me the chapter like two days ago," he realized. "Perhaps he already returned to Itachi," the brunette mused.

The last time he was talking with Naruto was a month ago. At first the blonde tried to contact him but Sasuke kept declining his phone calls, and the texts were nothing but asking him to pick up his phone. So he didn't reply to them either. He was still quite bitter about the whole business - especially now, after he was left with some antiallergenic covers he hated, and a stash of milk he kept buying out of habit. From what he knew, the blonde had already returned to the city - Sasuke kept seeing his face on tabloids covers, and once they even attended the same party. Obviously, Naruto was following Hinata like some kind of a stray dog. At one point he even approached Sasuke, who was accompanied by Suigetsu. The blonde didn't say a word, he simply stared at Uchiha as if he was trying to burn the image of his blue eyes into the brunette's soul. Somehow, he managed to do that.

Sasuke let out a frustrated growl and called his brother, who seemed quite surprised. Apparently Naruto decided to resolve to his old tactics. Suigetsu patted Sasuke's knee reassuringly, and Uchiha dialed the writer's number. The man picked up on the fourth try, and the brunette was already pissed off.

"Where is the chapter?" he asked in a cold tone.

"I don't have it," Naruto replied quietly. Sasuke could hear some woman in the background. He clenched his fist. _It was just one month._

"I don't have time for your bullshit," he stated firmly. He was getting tired of all of it. Luckily, his professional life started to look much brighter. The video game company he named Hawk set off quite nicely, and the public seemed rather enthusiastic about its future releases. Apparently his name helped out a little bit. Sasuke was pretty certain that his father would copyright his surname if he could.

"...Sasuke, look, I _really_ don't have it. I haven't written anything. There's nothing. Nada," he said in a defeated voice. The brunette realized that the woman he heard on the other end of the line was Hinata. _Of course_.

"Then stop screwing around and write it," he hissed. Suigetsu looked at him questioningly, and Sasuke rolled his eyes. His friend snorted at him.

"...do you think that I didn't try to?" Naruto questioned, sounding irritated.

"No, I think that you either have it or that you could've had it if you really wanted to," he replied matter-of-factly. "I'm not going to believe that you didn't have time to do it, they extended your deadline so you'd be able to do whatever you had to do for the movie-"

"I had plenty of time," Naruto interrupted him. "I just wasn't inspired-"

"Stop with that bullshit," Sasuke whined. "Next thing you'll be telling me is that you're experiencing some fucking Weltschmerz-"

"And what if I fucking was?! It's not like I have a 9-to-5 job-"

"God, you're so melodramatic," Sasuke complained, rubbing his forehead.

"For fuck's sake, if you think that you'd be able to do it, then just fucking write it yourself," the man yelled at him.

"You'd have to hand me your royalties," the brunette laughed at his interlocutor.

"Deal," Naruto growled. "I really want to see you fucking try," he added.

"It's easy to say when I have less than a week to finish it," Sasuke mused.

"I'm sure you'll manage, after all it's just _writing_," Naruto retorted. "Like, I'm certain that you're able to type pretty fast."

"Deal," the brunette hissed back, and hang up on the man. He felt absurdly agitated. Suigetsu looked at him questioningly. "I've just agreed to write the next chapter to Naruto's book," he stated, carefully weighing every word. "I'm an idiot," he realized.

"Just tell him that you're not going to do it, after all, it's _his_ job," the man told him. Sasuke frowned at his friend.

"I might as well admit that he was right and I was wrong," he said. "God, I have just five days," he whined. Suigetsu snorted.

"Now it seems like the fact that you're not invited to your parents' Christmas dinner is actually a bliss," he said, smiling in a mean way, and Sasuke slapped his wrist.

"I _was_ invited, I've just decided to not come," he corrected the man. "I mean, it would end up catastrophically. Mom's devastated, though."

"You're still welcome to come to my family," Suigetsu repeated his invitation but Sasuke just shook his head. He would feel like an intruder, and he didn't even like Christmas this much to begin with.

"I'll just have to write ten pages per day, it shouldn't be this difficult," he mused. "If two hundred and fifty words is one page, then I'll have to write two thousand and five hundred words daily. It actually seems possible."

"God, you and Karin both like mathematics. You'll still need something to write about," Suigetsu smiled under his nose, evidently doubting Sasuke's abilities. "You can't just write down random words, you know."

"Well... I have his outline somewhere," Sasuke stated, and quickly rose to his feet, taking his laptop, and looking for the file. "And we're somewhere in here-" he pointed to the _fifth murder_ that was written in bold. He looked over the list of clues that he had to scatter throughout the chapter.

"_We?_" Suigetsu interrupted him.

"I've read the previous chapters, I've discussed the novel with him, and I can imitate his style," Sasuke declared. "Also, I _can_ type pretty fast," he smiled warmly. His friend was glaring at him, suspicion clearly visible in his eyes. "I just need my assistant-"

"Oh hell no. I'm pretty sure that's cheating," Suigetsu protested. "Besides, it's the week before Christmas, I should enjoy my free time," he complained. Sasuke stared at him pleadingly. "What do you even need me for?" he asked in a defeated voice.

"I'm certain that we'll manage to do this together. We will brainstorm and make that idiot eat his words," he stated merrily. "Have you read anything written by him?" Sasuke inquired, and Suigetsu shook his head. The brunette rummaged through his desk drawer and handed him the previous chapters. "That's probably for the best. So, in this novel there's this detective - a police investigator - named Menma, who is trying to solve the case..."

"It sounds like every other crime fiction I've ever read," Suigetsu interrupted him.

"Shut up, will you. _So_, he's trying to solve a murder case, and the reader should already know who had done it - only Menma doesn't. There are clues that would link the murders to Sasuke-"

"...the character is actually named after you?" Suigetsu burst out laughing. "That's so _adorable_. And he's a murderer. God, that's rich," he snorted. Sasuke glared daggers at him, feeling a blush creep over his neck, cheeks, and ears.

"He's _not_ named Sasuke... I mean... he was at the beginning," the brunette stuttered, realizing how ridiculous he sounded. "Ugh, stop laughing," he demanded. "It started off as a joke, and now I'm kind of used to calling him that way-"

"By god, you're _so_ embarrassed," Suigetsu exclaimed. Sasuke sunk in himself, regretting ever inviting the man to help him. And agreeing to that stupid challenge or whatever it was. "Are they fucking?" his friend asked, disbelief clearly audible in his voice. Apparently, he became interested in what Naruto wrote. "Oh my god, they are actually fucking," he laughed, gasping for air. The brunette stared at the man accusingly, his cheeks burning. "Is _this_ how he made you fall for him?" he questioned jokingly.

"No, give me that," Sasuke demanded. It was rather ironic that his insert had a better sex life than he did.

"Hey, I should read these if I am to be of any help to you," Suigetsu whined, still chuckling every now and then. "Oh, this part is _good_. I should take this to the bathroom, you know, I feel that this room doesn't have the right energy," he joked.

* * *

><p>"This... isn't bad," Naruto admitted begrudgingly. Sasuke smiled proudly. Somehow, he managed to do the impossible. He almost didn't sleep for the last few days. Suigetsu turned out to be quite helpful after he stopped laughing. The chapter was just ten thousand words long but it was still more than what Uzumaki was able to produce over the last two months. The writer was probably ahead of his schedule anyway - he used to write <em>a lot<em> when Sasuke was his agent.

When he barged into Naruto's apartment on the Christmas Eve, he was hoping to see the apartment filled with people so he would be able to make his victory more public but it turned out that the writer was actually alone. He looked quite miserable, and Sasuke felt sorry for him.

"Now you don't need me at all," the blonde whispered, and handed him the chapter back. Sasuke frowned at the man. Somehow, he didn't feel as if he had won anything.

"...I wouldn't be able to do it if it wasn't for your outline," he admitted. "And we've discussed it a lot, I mean... It's still pretty much yours, I've just put it to words," he mumbled, feeling somewhat ashamed. "And Suigetsu was helping me," he blabbered. "What I wanted to say is that I wouldn't be able to do it without you," he confessed. The blonde stared at him questioningly, and he felt ridiculous. He didn't come there to make the writer feel better. He simply wanted him to acknowledge that the only reason why he didn't write the chapter himself was laziness. Sasuke cleared his throat.

"Me neither," Naruto said unexpectedly. He had to notice the puzzled expression on the brunette's face because he continued. "I mean... I wouldn't be able to write anything without you. Not the way it is written, at least. And I've tried to write without you but I can't, not yet. Everything I've written this month is far worse than this thing," he chuckled bitterly, pointing at Sasuke's creation. The brunette looked away. "Well... you've won. I'll send you my royalties by the end of the month," he stated calmly.

"...you don't have to do that. Just... write the damn thing," Sasuke replied.

"Sure," Naruto whispered absentmindedly. "I know that you don't want to talk with me, so... I don't know, return to your family or whatever," he said, and turned away, evidently not interested enough to even walk Sasuke to the doors. The brunette stared at Naruto's back, angry at himself. Some part of him wanted to stay with the man until he feels better. Other parts couldn't agree whether they were more hurt or angry because of what the blonde did to him earlier.

"I don't want to talk with you because you've led me on," Sasuke complained. Naruto stopped walking. For a short while the brunette believed that the other man will respond to him in any way but he just shrugged his shoulders, and sat on the couch, not even looking at him. Uchiha felt frustrated. "You've made me believe that you're not straight," he accused the man, his voice breaking. He hated himself for it.

"I'm not straight," the blone retorted.

"Then what exactly is so wrong with me that you had to _warm up_ to the idea of having sex with me?!" he yelled at him.

"Sasuke, look. It's not you, it's me," Naruto whimpered softly, sinking in his coach. He was looking away, fixing his eyes on some random point on the wall. "I guess that it's all because of the man that brought me up," he croaked. "Like... I'm not saying that he took me to the Enchanted Hunters but he used to make me feel uncomfortable. And I'm still pretty uncomfortable when it comes to all of that," he stated, nervously scratching his hand. Sasuke stared at him questioningly. The blonde cleared his throat and continued. "And sometimes _you_ make me feel uncomfortable as well, I mean... I _know_ that you don't want to, and that it's kind of my fault but... I don't know," he said, and sighed heavily. "And I _do_ realize that I've made you uncomfortable in the past, and I'm sorry for that," he added. "And you were right when you've said that I've fallen in love with Itachi's version of you - he made you sound like an adorable dork, and that was quite cute," Naruto smiled faintly. "And I guess that I should've known that when _Itachi_ describes someone as a really cute person then that person is anything but," he chuckled bitterly. "Because you're a scheming bastard," he mused, and Sasuke frowned at him. "And I must be a masochist because I love it," he whispered in a defeated tone.

"So that guy-"

"Well, he raised me, and thanks to him I'm who I am," Naruto interrupted him hastily. "Like, he was a writer as well, and I guess that if it wasn't for him then I would never take up writing..." he blabbered incoherently.

"...it's quite disturbing that you're defending him," the brunette whispered. He wasn't sure how to feel about what Naruto had just told him.

"To be honest, I have no idea _how_ exactly I feel about him. Sometimes I hate him, and sometimes I miss him... like, I don't know. He _was_ like a father to me, so... god, I really don't like to talk about it," Naruto exclaimed, pinching the bridge of his nose, and furrowing his eyebrows.

"Let's stop then," Sasuke suggested. He _wanted_ to know more but, at the same time, he could see how it weighed on the man. The brunette's features softened, and he forced a small reassuring smile on his face.

"...sometimes it's easier to pretend that things aren't _really_ happening," the writer whimpered quietly, and rubbed his eyes. "...and I _want_ to have sex with you, I really do," he added after a longer pause. "Eventually," he clarified, and Sasuke let out a strained sigh. He felt mostly guilty about everything he had done and said before, even though he was quite aware of the fact that he shouldn't really blame himself. There was no way for him to know. "And I do realize that it's already too late, so... I don't know, Sasuke, do what you want, I've just wanted you to know that there's nothing wrong with you," he stated absentmindedly. "God, what a great way to spend Christmas," the man snorted unhappily.

"At least we're alone together," the brunette replied calmly, and sat next to Naruto, who eyed him with suspicion. Sasuke put his arm on the back of the couch, inviting the blonde for a hug. The man didn't think about it too long, and nestled himself on his chest. "If you still want me to," he stated apologetically. Naruto buried his face into Sasuke's arm. "I'm sorry I didn't talk with you sooner," he whispered, fully aware that if he was in the blonde's shoes, he would make himself go away and never come back.

"I should have told you sooner," Naruto protested. "I've just... really didn't want you to dump me," he said, smiling sourly.

"Why would I dump you because of something like this?" Sasuke inquired.

"It _happened _before," Naruto said in a hushed voice. "And you're quite obviously rather physical so..."

"I can manage on my own," Sasuke interrupted the blonde. "I _would_ welcome your presence but I'm fine all by myself," he assured him.

"It's not it," Naruto murmured, smiling warmly. "I appreciate the sentiment, though," he mused. "You just stare too much. And your hands are everywhere. You are generally being pretty aggressive," he chuckled. "And I'm still not even comfortable with the idea. It's like... I want to do it but I'm afraid to at the moment," he stated quietly, staring at the ceiling, the back of his head resting on Sasuke's arm. His face was slightly flushed.

"If it helps anything, you can always bind and blindfold me," the brunette offered. "I'm open to pretty much everything," he assured the man. "Or I can just take off my contacts," he snickered. Naruto chuckled at the proposal.

"I'll consider it," he promised jokingly. "Back in high school one girl broke up with me, saying that I was weird," he reminisced. "She said that mutual masturbation was much more intimate than an actual intercourse," the blonde whispered, rubbing his eyelids.

"It somehow _is_," Sasuke agreed with the unknown girl. "But you're not weird," he stated firmly, ruffling the man's hair. Naruto smiled back at him.

"Sasuke – it's pretty obvious why _I_ am alone but what about you? Don't you have places to be?" he questioned.

"Do you really think that I and my father sitting by the same table is a good idea?" the brunette snorted unwillingly. "Besides, it's much nicer here. Imagine Itachi spending Christmas with my parents," he mused, and chuckled softly, trying to lighten up the mood. "At least _we_ can do whatever we want," he said. "He has to sing Christmas songs. And he hates singing. Frankly, he doesn't have a voice for it, and he knows it," Sasuke continued his story. The blonde smiled at him warmly, evidently relaxing.

"Those songs are probably too jolly for him," the writer said in a hushed voice. Only his head was resting on the other man's chest; he was hugging himself with his arms as if he was cold. Sasuke wasn't sure how he should act from now on. Normally, he would just embrace him but he was too afraid of making the man feel _uncomfortable_. "Want to do anything christmassy?" Naruto asked shyly, and the brunette mentally counted to ten. He hated Christmas.

"Sure," he replied. "Want to bake gingerbread cookies?" Naruto shot him a terrified stare, and gulped loudly.

"...I hate to tell you this but your cooking sucks," he blurted out. Sasuke raised an eyebrow in polite curiosity.

"I know," he answered firmly, studying Naruto's priceless expression. The blonde glared at him in disbelief, barely able to collect his thoughts. "I also know that I've forgotten to add sugar to the cake. And I'm pretty sure that you're _not _allergic to chocolate," he murmured happily.

"So... Let me get this straight. You've made sure that Sakura believed that I _was_ allergic to it only because I tried to spare your feelings? On the day after my birthday about which you, by the way, didn't even remember in the first place? A couple of hours after I've almost choked to death?" he inquired patiently.

"...yes," Uchiha admitted unwillingly. Naruto made it sound terrible.

"God, you're an ass," the blonde snorted. "Itachi must be high whenever he sees you," he mused and laughed. Sasuke returned the smile uncertainly. "Like, it's literally impossible to keep on liking you if one doesn't take into account that you're ridiculously hot," he joked, and Sasuke hit him lightly in the shoulder.

"I take it that you don't want to bake cookies," he muttered, pretending to be offended. Naruto grinned at him, and he wondered whether the blonde didn't try to play tougher than he actually was.

"I don't have the ingredients, and the stores are already closed," the writer replied. "So I guess that all we are left with is whatever they play on TV and instant ramen noodles," he sighed.

"Seems good enough," Sasuke said, and finally rested his arm on the other male's back, rubbing it gently. Naruto didn't protest, and the brunette let out a relieved sigh. It was all good now.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So, first of all - an update with literary references :D**

**Chapter 7 - Dulcinea - Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, Trojan Horse - Homer**

**Chapter 8 - "repulsive yellow flowers" - Mikhail Bulgakov, Aldonza - Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, "Isn't it pretty to think so?" - Ernest Hemingway**

**Chapter 9 - "Manuscripts don't burn" - Mikhail Bulgakov, Godot - S. Beckett**

**Chapter 10 - umm, not adding flour to the cake - Lucy Maud Montgomery ;)**

**Chapter 11 - Beast in the jungle - Henry James**

**Chapter 12 - the Enchanted Hunters - Vladimir Nabokov, mutual masturbation as being more intimate - John Irving**

**On a side note - I'm well aware that most of these writers are white males, and, frankly, I hate it. My main reason for sticking with them is their popularity. Another reason is that well known authors who aren't white males tend to focus on social matters.  
><strong>

**Second of all - thank you for all of your reviews :) They're my fuel. And I know that this fic might be _frustrating_ so I'm really grateful for staying with me :). **


	13. Chapter 13

"Sasuke, wake up," Naruto whispered softly. The brunette blinked his eyes, frowning at an unpleasant sound - his phone was ringing. He raised his head from the blonde's chest, noting with embarrassment that he had once again drooled all over the writer. "Here's your phone," Naruto told him, handing him the cell. Sasuke eyed the screen, unable to read the caller's ID. "It's Itachi," the man informed him. The brunette swiped over the screen with his finger to receive the call.

"Sasuke, where are you?" Itachi whined loudly. The brunette rested his head on Naruto's brown arm, feeling somewhat irritated. It was the first day of Christmas, he should had been allowed to sleep in at least once a year. And he still couldn't say that he and Naruto had spent an entire night together without being disturbed. Sasuke sighed heavily.

"At Naruto's," he informed his brother, wondering why would that matter. Itachi huffed with annoyance.

"I and mother will be there in twenty minutes," he stated, and hang up on Sasuke before he could protest against it.

"What did he want?" Naruto inquired in a worried tone, audibly sleepy. They've spent the last night doing sweet nothings. That was until the blonde decided that he needed to correct what Sasuke had written. Uchiha still couldn't believe that there were only two paragraphs that Naruto deemed good enough to not change them at all.

"He and my mom will be here in twenty minutes," he reported tiredly, raising himself on his elbows. Everything was a blur. He felt a hand brushing away his bangs, and smiled at the blonde, who pulled him closer, and kissed him on the lips. "Sorry," he murmured into Naruto's mouth.

"I don't see why you should be sorry," the man replied, stretching his arms. "But I guess that we should get out of the bed," he mumbled, and yawned. Sasuke smiled at him apologetically, got up, and found his way into the bathroom. When he left it a couple of minutes later, his world in full HD again, he heard a doorbell. The brunette frowned, and approached the doors, catching a glimpse of Naruto running into the room he had just left. Apparently the blonde was too shy to meet Itachi and his mom wearing nothing but pajama pants. Sasuke could still remember that when he came to the writer's apartment for the first time, the man greeted him practically naked. Sasuke shook his head, and opened the doors. Then he closed them again, plastering himself over them.

"Let me in," demanded Sakura. Sasuke wondered whether it was possible that she didn't see who he was. He locked the apartment, backed into the corridor, and knocked on the bathroom doors.

"Sakura's here," he muttered in a panicked voice.

"...oh," Naruto grunted stupidly. "What do we do now?"

"No idea," Sasuke whispered back at the doors. "Tell her to go away."

"That would be rude," the blonde pointed out and left the room. "She won't tell anyone," he promised Sasuke.

"How do you know that?" the brunette whined. "If she does, I'm fucked."

"We both are," the man corrected him, and let in the woman, who eyed him angrily. Sasuke stood awkwardly in the corridor, uncertain about what he should do next. "Hi, Sakura," Naruto greeted her, grinning sheepishly. "Sorry for Sasuke, he gets nervous around strangers," he added in a mocking tone. The brunette pondered over whether he preferred to disappear himself or to make the writer do so.

"He's the guy that ruined your book," she exclaimed, and sent Uchiha an accusing glare. "Do you know what I have to go through because of you?" Sakura questioned.

"Sorry," Sasuke mumbled quietly. The woman's features softened for no reason whatsoever.

"So, what brings you here?" Naruto inquired.

"I just wanted to wish you a happy Christmas," she said. "And I have a little gift for you," she added and handed him a gift bag. Sasuke realized that he had already fucked up twice when it came to giving presents. Luckily, so did Naruto. "Remember that you are invited to that Christmas party tomorrow," she reminded him.

"Tell Hinata I'm not going," Naruto replied absentmindedly. "And that's a lovely pen," he said after unpacking his gift. Sasuke had to admit that it was pretty neat. "Thank you," Naruto stated in a warm voice, and hugged his agent.

"You should be the one telling her this," Sakura complained into his ear. Unfortunately for her, she wasn't able to hide the fact that she was smiling. "Please, tell me that this guy didn't return to being your editor," she whined. _I've never stopped._

"Oh, no, he's here for personal reasons," the blonde informed her.

"Personal?" she repeated in a questioning tone. "Are you trying to tell me that you've put me through all of this shit just so you could get laid?" she asked, audibly pissed off.

"No, he didn't," Sasuke retorted. "Don't tell anyone that you've seen me here," he demanded. Naruto rolled his eyes at him from behind the woman's back.

"...why?" she asked, piercing him with her eyes.

"Because I'm asking you to," Naruto replied shyly. "I'll explain everything when I'll be able to," he promised.

"All right," she decided. Sasuke frowned at the sound of the doorbell. Naruto opened the doors and bowed.

"Good morning, Mrs Uchiha," he greeted Sasuke's mom as if she was a drill sergeant. Itachi snickered at the idiot and waved at him. Then he noticed Sakura, and stared at her for a suspiciously long time.

"Good morning, Naruto. Sorry for barging in," Mikoto answered. The blonde practically shouted at her that it wasn't a problem.

"Sakura, Sasuke was never here," Itachi stated in a cool tone.

"Yes, I already know that," she retorted. "Sakura Haruno," she introduced herself, and Sasuke's mom replied with the same. "I see that you have some sort of family gathering here, so I'll take my leave," she added and left. Sasuke heaved a heavy sigh, and cleared his throat. It was already a disaster.

"Why did you come?" he asked his family, gasping in surprise as they pulled him in for a hug. He could hear Naruto snort at him.

"See, mother? He's much more rude than I am," Itachi mused, straightening his back again, and shoving a small package into Sasuke's hands. "We've brought you cake," he added proudly. "Make us some coffee," he ordered and sat on Naruto's couch.

Mikoto wanted to protest, claiming that she didn't need any coffee, and Naruto almost killed himself on his way to the kitchen. Itachi, on the other hand, simply kept staring at Sasuke in a mocking manner. Then he laughed soundly when the writer handed his younger brother coffee with milk. Sasuke didn't comment on that, and simply placed the cup on the table.

"The cake is delicious," the blonde exclaimed. "Sasuke, you should take some cooking lessons from your mother," he added, and Sasuke refrained himself from snorting. No-one in his family knew how to cook. He was just the only one stupid enough to let people know about it.

"I've heard that you're dating my son," Mikoto said calmly, addressing Naruto, who seemed unnecessarily flustered. He gaped at her as if she was speaking in a foreign language, and probably wouldn't admit that he _was_ in fact dating her son if the said son didn't nod his head. "I can't say I'm surprised, Sasuke-"

"I would _love_ to take these cooking lessons, mom," Sasuke muttered, interrupting her. Their stares locked, and she bit the inside of her cheek. "The cake is really delicious, it reminds me of-"

"Sasuke never mentioned you. At all. Even once," she spat out, and eyed her son angrily. The blonde gawked at both of them. It seemed that he wasn't certain what her words were supposed to mean.

The rest of the visit was much more pleasant. Apparently his father adored the watch he had bought him, and was wearing it constantly, unaware that it was from Sasuke. And, if Itachi was to be trusted, he seemed also disappointed that Itachi wasn't as determined as Sasuke was. The man was also glad that he could finally see his mom. He missed his father as well but Mikoto was the one, who raised him - she was a freelancer and worked from home. And they actually did try to learn how to cook together - unfortunately, it was an utter failure. The whole family suffered from food poisoning afterwards, and that catastrophe was something even Itachi didn't dare to laugh at.

* * *

><p>Sasuke enjoyed the Christmas break - he didn't have as much time as he used to have in the previous years but he was still able to rest. He was also glad when Naruto sent him <em>his<em> chapter, and was pleasantly surprised to see that the writer decided to leave some of his sentences untouched. He had to admit that it was much better than his creation. Sasuke smiled to himself, excited for what was to come. In two days Itachi would be declared the president of the Uchiha Publishing House, and it seemed that Naruto would be transferred to Sasuke soon after that.

Everything was starting to work out the way he had envisioned it to do. Karin informed him that some people were already getting interested in what he was doing, and that he might be able to merge the publishing houses much sooner than it had been planned. Sasuke mentally patted himself on the shoulder. His phone started ringing - it was Naruto. He smirked happily, picking it up, and opening his inbox with other hand. His smile faded.

"Sasuke," the writer whispered in a nervous voice. "I'm getting... well... a disturbing amount of _fan mail_," he stated.

Sasuke read the titles of the e-mails he had gotten himself. They were all from some tabloid newspapers. And they were asking him for an interview about his and Naruto's relationship. All blood left Sasuke's face. He wondered why nobody informed him about all of this sooner. Apparently the shit hit the fan around 6 am, and it was already 9 am. He opened the first mail.

"...and Fugaku called me," the blonde added in a grave tone. Sasuke's heart stopped beating for a moment. He should probably fire everyone and hire his father's employees. They seemed much more competent. "He asked me about us..."

"...what did you tell him?" he inquired, wondering how to fix everything. The only thing endangered was his relationship with Naruto. But, then again, he wasn't willing to let it go.

"That it was all just gossip," the man replied wearily. "There are pictures of us all over the internet," he said. "And people know about my book..."

"What do they know?" Sasuke questioned, feeling panicked. Everything was falling apart.

"...about you, I guess," Naruto answered reluctantly. "Fugaku wants me to change your sex," he uttered bitterly. Sasuke raised an eyebrow. That was a rather unexpected request. "He said it would ruin your image," the blonde clarified.

"Why would he care..." he stopped mid-sentence, stood up, and paced around his room. Perhaps his father wasn't an evil mastermind. If people were to learn that Sasuke Uchiha was an inspiration for a murderer, they would go crazy. It would give him a shitload of bad publicity. He heaved a tired sigh. He wondered how pissed off his father had to be. He didn't even call him. Neither did Itachi.

"Sasuke, this is a disaster," the blonde mumbled out. "People are already making fanarts," he complained. "And some of them are claiming that this novel will be shit."

Sasuke swallowed his anger. The idiot was ridiculously selfish. He sat on the floor, refraining himself from head-butting the wall. He would have to fix it all. And he couldn't see a way of doing that without destroying his relationship with Naruto. From now on they would be under close surveillance. They couldn't hide, and they couldn't come out. He wondered how many people had an access to the unfinished novel. Probably a lot. It would leak out, and the idiot used his name in an attempt to irritate him every now and then.

He didn't know what he should do. The easiest thing to do would be severing his ties with the writer and saying that the poor idiot had a crush on him. He would probably have to sue him and the Uchiha Publishing House for damaging his image. There wasn't any proof that he and Naruto were together. There were people who would claim otherwise but they were linked to the writer and his publisher. Their statements wouldn't hold in court. Sasuke bit the insides of his cheeks.

"Sasuke?" Naruto called out his name, impatiently waiting for an answer. Sasuke frowned. Perhaps the blonde really was a spy. That could explain why he was avoiding sex. The brunette massaged his temples, wondering whether he wasn't recorded. While the recording couldn't be used in court, it could pop up in the internet and ruin Sasuke.

"What?" he questioned, angry at himself for not hanging up on the man.

"What do you want me to do?" he inquired in a hushed voice. Sasuke didn't know how to respond to that question. He wanted the whole thing to disappear. He wanted to be with Naruto. He wanted to go back to being an editor. He wouldn't have an image he needed to uphold.

"I don't know," he confessed, feeling defeated. Whoever spilled the news, could announce their victory. Sasuke was beaten.

The brunette wondered whether his brother and father would conspire together to bring him down. Perhaps they wanted him to return to their company and enjoy the scraps. Maybe Hinata decided that she was sick and tired of Naruto not returning her affections. Perhaps Sakura was still pissed off about what he had done to Naruto's book. Someone might had bribed Suigetsu and his team - that would explain why he learned about the whole thing from Naruto and not from them. Or it could be anyone, who had an access to Uchiha Publishing server. Sasuke didn't even know whom he should attack.

There was a heavy silence on the other end of the line.

"I could just cancel the novel," the blonde offered. It was pointless, the whole thing would appear in the internet sooner or later. "You do know that I had nothing to do with this, right?" he inquired, sounding hurt.

"...yeah," he answered, not feeling better because of it. It just made everything much more difficult. If Naruto had double-crossed him, he would know what to do. Somehow, destroying bonds was easier than protecting them. He heard that someone tried to reach him on his phone. "I'll call you back," he promised, still not sure whether he would really do it.

Sasuke glanced at his screen. He had gotten a text message from his father. He ordered him to meet him in the house. The brunette shook his head, barely able to understand how Fugaku was still able to treat him as if he was an unruly employee. Deciding that he had nothing to lose, he left the apartment, and headed towards his family home.

* * *

><p>"I'm trying to protect you," his father stated, his eyebrow twitching in impatience. Sasuke wasn't sure whether he had ever seen him show so much emotion. His father wanted him to cut everything that connected him to Naruto. Itachi was siding with him. And so was his mom. Sasuke didn't know if they were genuinely concerned about him but his father didn't demand anything more. He doubted whether Fugaku would go so far just to prevent Naruto's transfer. It didn't seem worth it.<p>

"We've just gotten back together," he answered, hoping that at least once in his life being sincere would pay off.

"You shouldn't have let _this_ happen in the first place," he uttered. Itachi frowned but nodded his head. Sasuke wondered whether his brother didn't feel guilty about pushing Naruto into his arms. And what exactly did his father mean by _this_. He wasn't too eager to ask him to clarify that. "You should've listened to me," he added, pinching the bridge of his nose. Sasuke caught himself wanting to copy the gesture.

"...what's the worst thing that could happen-" he tried to dismiss the whole affair. He didn't want to make any decisions before he would rethink everything. There _had_ to be something he could do.

"Sasuke, do you _really_ want people to ask you whether you've rehearsed these scenes?" Itachi interrupted him.

"People already know I'm gay," he retorted. He was well aware of the fact that his brother wasn't getting at that. His mom sat next to him, and sighed heavily. Somehow, this whole meeting seemed like an intervention.

"Honey, you _do_ realize that people would use that book against you whenever you'll do something they won't agree with, right?"

"Of course he does, he's not an idiot," Fugaku growled. Sasuke glanced at him. It was probably the closest thing to praise that he had ever heard the man say. "Son, you've worked hard for what you have right now, don't let something stupid ruin it."

Sasuke frowned. It was difficult to disagree with him. He hated the fact that his father was usually right. Objectively speaking, Naruto had nothing to offer him. And costs had outweighed the little gains a long time ago. He hid his face in his hands, intensively trying to find a way out of the situation. He wasn't able to come up with anything. He shrugged in surprise when his mom hugged him tightly. He expected his father to snort with irritation that Sasuke was already an adult but the man didn't say anything, patiently waiting for him to reply.

He heaved a strained sigh. What he had to do was obvious. He just couldn't brace himself to go through with it. Naruto wouldn't probably understand that it _had_ to happen, and would become brokenhearted again. His career wouldn't suffer because of the scandal, it was possible that more people would be willing to buy his books. And if Sakura wasn't stupid - and from what Sasuke saw, she wasn't - she would be able to milk that affair. Sasuke would deny that there ever was anything between him and Uzumaki, and Naruto would be seen as deceived. Hell, people might even treat the stupid book as a love confession and not see it for what it really was - a way to unnerve an editor.

"...what do you want me to do?" he questioned, and raised his eyes, meeting his father's.

"I'm proud of you," he stated. It made Sasuke far less happy than he had anticipated it to. "We will cover everything, just say that you and him never existed."

"...give me some time to think," he pleaded. Fugaku rubbed his temples with straightened fingers.

"There's no time," he stated the obvious. "We may not be able to repair the damages if you'll keep stalling."

"...why do you care?" Sasuke asked. His father seemed genuinely surprised by the question. "You wanted security guards to follow me if I ever wanted to enter the office-"

"You've chosen to become my competition, and you deserved to be treated seriously," he said calmly. Sasuke's eyes widened in disbelief. "I've never interfered with your plans but I couldn't let you roam through my office," he added, audibly disappointed by the fact that he needed to voice that.

"I've told you that you should've been nicer," Mikoto complained. Sasuke sent his mom a faint smile.

"...since you're treating me seriously, I can't really accept your help," he whispered. His father smiled under his nose. "I'll deal with it on my own."

He didn't need a catcher in the rye. He needed to stand on his own legs, and face whatever was coming his way.


End file.
